Longhorns Country

Top OT Kelvin Banks Commits To Texas Over Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Others

The Texas Longhorns have gained a commitment from arguably the nation's top offensive linemen

Matt Galatzan

If the Texas Longhorns had one major need to fill with their remaining spots in the 2022 recruiting cycle, it was along the offensive line. 

And on Saturday, they landed arguably the best one in the country, in Summer Creek (Humble, TX) offensive tackle, Kelvin Banks. 

Banks, who was previously committed to Oregon, currently ranks as the nation's No. 2 offensive tackle, and No. 25 player overall per SI All-American's national recruiting rankings.

Banks was also one of several top recruits who re-opened their recruitments when Mario Cristobal left Eugene for the Miami Hurricanes.

Though he had reportedly originally planned to hold his recruitment decisions until February, a strong push from Steve Sarkisian, Kyle Flood, and the Texas Longhorns was enough to seal the deal with the elite talent. 

Now, Banks has found his college home, and will officially sign with the Longhorns on December 15.

With Banks now committed, the Longhorns will not only have a plug-and-play talent at the blindside protector spot for the next three seasons but, as the type of player that can completely change the dynamic of the offensive from Day 1, Texas will also have a cornerstone to the entire 2022 class. 

And what is even better news for Longhorns fans is that, is that they do not appear even close to being done with making substantial additions to the offensive front in the 2022 cycle either. 

Texas is still in the running, and heavy favorites at this point, to land Bowie (Arlington, TX) offensive lineman Devon Campbell, who could fit along any of the five spots along the front, as well as Todd Beamer (Federal Way, WA) offensive tackle Malik Agbo.

Texas is also still in heavy pursuit of Atascocita (Humble, TX) tackle Kam Dewberry, Duncanville (TX) offensive tackle Cam Williams, and St. John Bosco (Bellflower, CA) interior offensive lineman Earnest Greene.

But no matter which of those elite players the Longhorns end up landing, Banks the commitment of Banks is an insurmountable prize in and of its self.

You can view SI All-American's scouting report of Banks below:

A specimen in the open field, Banks takes the crown for the most supremely athletic offensive lineman in this class. A fluid mover in every sense of the word and every situation he's placed in, he will be an immediate threat for Oregon in the screen and counter game. He gathers himself exceptionally well and has violent hands upon arrival. There's not a lot of in-game experience in the pass-set department, but the athletic profile says with time he will be more than okay. 

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Matt Galatzan
MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.

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