The 15 Duke basketball stars who could have starred in football
By Matt Giles
player. 434. TIGHT END. 6-7, 215. Gene Banks. 6. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis
Duke basketball stars who could’ve starred in football: TE Gene Banks
Some older fans consider former Duke forward Gene Banks the best Blue Devil not to have his jersey number in the rafters. Some younger fans have no idea who he is at all. Unfortunately, fans who need to play catchup have few options in terms of video highlights from the late 70s and early 80s. What all fans can clearly see below, though, is a 6-foot-7, 215-pound beast who posterized Virginia’s 7-foot-4 Ralph Sampson.
Had Banks chosen to play college football, it’s a no-brainer he had the muscles to block defensive ends and the pure athleticism to give linebackers and safeties headaches when blistering through his routes as a tight end.