Texas football OT Kelvin Banks named preseason Freshman All-American

There are plenty of highly touted true freshmen that are on the roster heading into the 2022 season for head coach Steve Sarkisian and the Texas football program. And the highlighting position group among all the talented true freshmen for Texas heading into the 2022 season is definitely the offensive line.

Sark, offensive line coach/offensive coordinator Kyle Flood, and the Longhorns signed the highest-rated OL recruiting class in the country for the 2022 cycle. It was also maybe the most highly touted offensive line signing class in the modern era of recruiting for the Longhorns program.

One of the most talented players in this extremely highly touted group of true freshmen offensive linemen is the former elite five-star Summer Creek offensive tackle recruit Kelvin Banks. This talented in-state product recently received honors that show just how impactful he can be for the Longhorns right away at the offensive tackle position.

Freshman Texas football OT Kelvin Banks tabbed by On3 as a preseason Freshman All-American

On Aug 16., On3 released their picks for the preseason Freshman All-American Team for the 2022 college football campaign. And Banks was included among the five offensive linemen selected for the preseason Freshman All-America Team by On3.

The other four offensive linemen included in the mix were LSU’s Will Campbell, Clemson’s Blake Miller, North Carolina’s Zach Rice, and Oregon’s Josh Conerly Jr.

Here’s more on what On3 had to say about the inclusion of Banks as a Freshman All-American.

"Kelvin Banks was the jewel of Texas’ splendid offensive line haul in the 2022 cycle. The 6-foot-5, 318-pounder was a summer enrollee, but has quickly assimilated. Banks is reportedly already seeing some reps as the first-team left tackle and could be in line to start on the blindside as early as week one. Banks’ combination of length, flexibility, nimble feet and ready-made size make him one of the prime contenders to make a splash as a true freshman offensive lineman."

What this description regarding Banks’ inclusion as a Freshman All-American doesn’t mention is how he could be an impactful offensive tackle right away for Sark, Flood, and the Longhorns. There’s a good chance at this point of fall camp that Banks could be the favorite to be a starter at one of the offensive tackle spots for the regular season opener.

Banks is definitely pushing both sophomore offensive tackle Andrej Karic and redshirt senior Christian Jones day in and day out in fall practice for one of those starting spots in Week 1.

Texas finished up last season with a record of 5-7 (3-6 Big 12), missing out on bowl season for the first time since 2016. Sark, Banks, and the Longhorns are set to open up the 2022 regular season at home at DKR on Sep. 3 against the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks, with kickoff time set for 7 p.m. CT.