Indiana State University Athletics

Jalen Banks joins the Indiana State coaching staff as the running backs coach in January 2025. Banks comes to the Sycamores following stints at both Bucknell, Louisiana Lafayette, Fordham, Northwestern, and Austin Peay State.
 
Banks’ one season at Bucknell featured huge dividends as the Bison running back room featured 2024 Jerry Rice Award finalist Tariq Thomas. Thomas put together 783 rushing yards on 166 carries on his way to earning Patriot League Rookie of the Year honors and Second Team All-League recognition. Banks also worked with the kickoff return game while assisting in both run and pass gameplan duties.
 
Banks spent the 2023 season at the University of Louisiana Lafayette, where he was a defensive graduate assistant working primarily with the Ragin’ Cajuns’ Sam linebackers.
 
The season prior, Banks coached running backs at Fordham and worked with some of the premier rushers in the Patriot League. Banks coached 2022 All-Patriot League tandem Trey Sneed and Julius Loughridge, who combined for over 2,200 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns that season. With Banks on staff, the Rams posted the top-ranked offense in all of FCS in 2022, racking up 608.9 yards and 49.5 points per game.
 
Banks spent the 2020 and 2021 seasons as an offensive graduate assistant and quality control analyst at Northwestern. He assisted with the wide receivers and running backs in what was his second stint with the Wildcats. Banks had previously served as an on-campus recruiting intern at Northwestern from June 2019 to February 2020.
 
Between his two stints in Evanston, Banks was a defensive graduate assistant at Austin Peay, where he assisted in the defensive backs room and was primarily responsible for coaching the Governors’ cornerbacks.
 
Banks joined the coaching ranks in 2018 as a varsity defensive backs coach and junior varsity defensive coordinator at Thornton Township High School, where he graduated from before going on to a four-year playing career at Vanderbilt. Banks saw action in 29 games with the Commodores, contributing on special teams, at safety and at running back.
 
Banks earned his bachelor’s degree in communication studies and achieved a minor in managerial studies at Vanderbilt. Banks is a native of Markham, Ill.