Football
- Title:
- Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends
- Phone:
- 205-348-3600
Jeff Banks is in his third season on head coach Nick Saban’s staff as the special teams coordinator and tight ends coach after spending the previous five years in the same role at Texas A&M.
The 2019 season saw the Crimson Tide’s special teams units highlighted by Jaylen Waddle who earned first team All-America honors while leading the nation in punt returns, averaging 24.4 yards per return with a touchdown. He also returned five kickoffs for 175 yards and a score. Freshman placekicker Will Reichard kicked well early in the season but saw his year derailed by a hip flexor that forced him to miss eight games. Joseph Bulovas filled in and hit 8-of-11 field goals. Walk-on Ty Perine, Reichard, Skyler DeLong and Mike Bernier shared the punting duties and combined to average 39.9 yards per punt.
Injuries also hampered Banks’ tight end room with Miller Forristall missing four games while leading the unit with 15 catches for 167 yards and four touchdowns. Major Tennison added three grabs for 21 yards and a score while former offensive linemen Kendall Randolph and Chris Owens converted to tight end midway through the season and provided Alabama a little more push in the run game.
In his first season in Tuscaloosa, Banks saw his punt return defense rank fifth nationally (2.67 ypr) and his punt return unit finish 12th in the country (14.71 ypr). The Tide was also third in the SEC in kickoff returns with an average of 23.77 yards per return. Waddle was named the SEC Freshman of the Year while ranking second in the SEC in punt return average at 14.6 yards per return with one touchdown. That 2018 campaign also saw Bulovas connect on 14-of-18 field goals with a long of 49 yards with 44 touchbacks on kickoffs.
His tight ends Irv Smith Jr. and Hale Hentges also excelled with Smith earning second team All-America honors. Smith caught 44 passes for 710 yards and seven touchdowns, which was a school record for tight ends. Hentges hauled in three touchdown passes while proving essential to the Tide’s rushing attack.
Banks came to Alabama after five years as the tight ends and special teams coordinator for Kevin Sumlin at Texas A&M. The Aggies boasted one of the nation’s top special teams units in 2017, ranking third nationally in net punting (42.29 ypp) and second nationally in punt returns with a 17.1 average and two touchdowns. Punter Shane Tripucka ranked sixth nationally in punting with an average of 45.5 yards per punt. Banks’ units were also No. 1 nationally with eight blocked kicks during his final year in College Station.
In 2016, the Aggies led the nation in punt return average at 25.39 yards per return with four touchdowns. Returner Christian Kirk led the nation individually in punt return touchdowns with three while averaging 21.7 yards on 13 returns. Texas A&M also ranked seventh nationally in net punting in 2016 with a 41.58 yard average.
The highlight of his first season with the Aggies in 2013 was the development of punter Drew Kaser and placekicker Josh Lambo. Kaser broke the A&M single-season record with a 47.4 punt average while being named a first team All-American and being selected as a finalist for the Ray Guy Award. Kaser was a sixth-round NFL Draft pick of the Chargers in 2016. Lambo connected on 80 percent of his field goal kicks and was 50-of-51 on PATs. The Aggies also blocked an SEC-high three kicks, ranked third in net punting (39.4) and finished second in kickoff return defense (18.3).
Prior to arriving at Texas A&M in 2013, Banks had a brief stint as the running backs coach and special teams coordinator at Virginia after having coached running backs and coordinated special teams for nine years at UTEP (2004-12).
During his time in El Paso, Banks oversaw one of the top special teams units in Conference USA, as the Miners led the league in special teams statistics in 2011 and 2012. In 2012, UTEP led the conference in net punting with a 40.1 average and punt return defense with a 3.1 yard average. The Miners allowed just 65 yards on 21 opponent punt returns. UTEP also ranked No. 3 in kickoff returns (23.8 avg.) and No. 4 in punt returns (10.1). That same season, UTEP blocked four kicks and returned a pair of kickoffs for touchdowns.
The 2011 season saw UTEP lead C-USA in punting (40.5 avg.), rank second in kickoff returns (26.3 avg.) and wrap up at third in kickoff coverage (44.4 avg.). The Miners rated fourth nationally in kickoff returns and sixth in net punting, and the team blocked three punts while executing successful fake kicks for first downs on the road on three occasions. In 2009, a Banks pupil, Donald Buckram, broke UTEP’s single-season rushing record that had stood for over 60 years by rushing for 1,594 yards.
Banks served as an assistant coach at Idaho State from 2000-03, where he was the special teams coordinator, recruiting coordinator and running backs coach. Idaho State led the nation in net punting twice in his three seasons. He got his coaching start as a graduate assistant under Mike Price at Washington State from 1998-2000, where he worked with the offense in addition to the punters and kickers.
As a player, Banks was a two-time all-conference punter for Washington State, posting a 42.8 yard average as a junior and 43.4 yard average as a senior. In his final season, he led the Pac-10 and was No. 15 nationally while helping the Cougars go 10-2 and earn an invitation to the Rose Bowl. Banks was also selected to participate in the Senior Bowl.
Banks has a daughter, Sydnei, and two sons, Gage and Tanner. Banks earned his bachelor’s degree in communications from Washington State in 1999.
