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Ole Miss safety TJ Banks commits to Louisville

IMG_6080 3by: William McDermott01/16/26804derm

Ole Miss sophomore safety Travaris “TJ” Banks has committed to Louisville out of the NCAA transfer portal.

Banks spent two seasons with the Rebels, having the best year of his career so far in 2025. Banks logged 20 tackles, 11 solo, and a pass breakup across 14 games, with one start. He tallied five tackles in Ole Miss’s three games in the College Football Playoff. As a true freshman in 2024, Banks finished with four tackles in three appearances.

He will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.

On3 had Banks as the 872nd-ranked player available in the transfer portal and 76th-ranked safety. Out of Hillcrest High School (Ala.), the 6-foot-3, 200-pound defensive back was a top-30 safety in the nation and a four-star recruit.

Banks was an outstanding two-way high school football player and posted 42 tackles, three for loss, six pass breakups, and nine touchdowns with over 1,200 all-purpose yards as a junior at former high school Northridge before transferring to Hillcrest his senior year.

Hailing from Tuscaloosa, Banks originally chose the Rebels over Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, and Mississippi State. He is also the third safety to commit to Louisville out of the 2026 transfer portal window, joining Iowa’s Koen Entringer, Murray State’s Dylan Rowsey, and Kentucky’s DJ Waller. Both of the Cardinals’ starting safeties from this fall, JoJo Evans and D’Angelo Hutchinson, have run out of eligibility, and Corey Gordon left the program.

Cards’ head coach Jeff Brohm has hauled in a massive portal class, which currently ranks as the fifth-best in the nation according to On3’s team rankings, with over 27 incoming transfers, five of which are four-stars.

Louisville transfer portal commits: Highlights, stats, and fit

This story will be updated

Current image: Jan 8, 2026; Glendale, AZ, USA; Mississippi Rebels safety TJ Banks (7) against the Miami Hurricanes during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Jan 8, 2026; Glendale, AZ, USA; Mississippi Rebels safety TJ Banks (7) against the Miami Hurricanes during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

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