Pitt Offers 4-Star Offensive Lineman

Pitt’s latest offer to a 2017 prospect was a bit unusual.

The offer went to offensive tackle Aaron Banks.

The thing that’s a bit unusual is that Banks is from El Cerrito, California. Unlike previous Pitt coaching staffs, Pat Narduzzi and his assistants are recruiting the entire country looking for talent.

“Yeah, the Pitt offer was out of the blue but very cool”, said Banks.

As you can tell from the picture, Banks is a big, big man. How about 6-7, 305 lbs and he’s only a junior. Aaron tells me that he comes from a big family. His father is 6-3 and his younger brother, Frankie, is already 6-2, 325 lbs.

Not only is Banks big, he’s talented as well. Currently, Rivals.com has him ranked as the 70th ranked player in the Class of 2017 and one of the Top 10 offensive tackles in the country.

“I think I’m a pretty balanced lineman but I’m told that the strength of my game is run-blocking, I love run blocking because I like to pancake defenders”, said Banks.

Most of Banks offers are from schools on the West Coast: Arizona State, California, Colorado, Oregon State, UCLA, USC, Washington State and Wisconsin.

Banks tells me that the only two schools that he’s visited so far have been UCLA and California. However, this spring he’d like to visit Oregon and Washington.

Any chance of him making a trip across the country to visit Pitt or is that a long-shot?

“No, I wouldn’t consider it a long-shot but it’s something that I need to discuss with my family first”, said Banks.

So would a kid from California consider a school on the East Coast or would he be more likely to stay closer to home?

“Honestly, it doesn’t really matter to me. It’s about the school. I have no problem traveling. In fact, my AAU basketball team has traveled all around the country”, said Banks.

Pitt’s offers to 2017 Offensive Tackles:
Aaron Banks: 4-star, California
Isaiah Wilson: 5-star, Brooklyn, NY
Robert Hainsey: 4-star, Bradenton, Fla.
Carter Warren: 3-star, Wayne, NJ
Naasir Watkins: 3-star, Olney, MD
Gabe Houy: 2-star, Upper St. Clair
Josh Lugg: 4-star, North Allegheny (Notre Dame)
Noah DeHond: 3-star, Hightstown, NJ (Clemson)

While it seems a long-shot that Pitt could land Banks, I wouldn’t put anything past Narduzzi and his assistant coaches. The key will be somehow trying to get Banks to make a visit this summer to Pitt.

Banks told me that if he doesn’t know where he wants to go by the summer, he’ll hold off making a decision until Senior Night during his senior season (October/November).