The college football season in Texas starts a week earlier than normal with a Week 0 matchup between North Texas and UTEP. To celebrate us making it through another off-season, we’re counting down the 50 most important players in Texas every day until Aug. 27. The list isn’t necessarily about which players are the best, though talent plays a major factor in most important. 

No. 42: Connor Galvin, Baylor senior offensive tackle

The History

Galvin received the best tutelage any young offensive lineman can receive in Texas by attending Katy High School and playing for head coach Gary Joseph. Galvin helped the Tigers go 12-1 and reach the Class 6A Division I state semifinals as a senior after grading out at 91 percent and recording 63 knockdowns in 2017. He was a four-star prospect, according to ESPN, and a member of the DCTF Texas Top 300. Galvin picked Baylor over offers such as TCU, UCLA, Florida, and Colorado. 

Galvin wasn’t provided much time to adjust to the college level. He played in all 13 games as a true freshman in 2018, starting the last six contests of the season at left tackle for the Baylor Bears. His first collegiate start was against West Virginia. He missed four games in 2019 with a knee injury, but still managed nine starts in a successful 2019 campaign. The 2020 season was forgettable for everyone in Waco, but Galvin was one of the bright spots with eight starts at left tackle. 

Galvin, and the rest of the Baylor offensive line, received a new lease on life heading into 2021 when Aranda hired Jeff Grimes to be the offensive coordinator. His wide zone rushing attack transformed the Bears and put Galvin in position to play his best football. He started all 14 games at left tackle and finished the year as the Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year. 

The Skillset

The 6-7, 310-pound Galvin is an athletic big man who does a great job blocking in space for man his size. He’s excellent in pass pro because he possesses tremendous feet and technique due to his vast experience at the college and high school level. Availability and experience are skills at the college level, and Galvin checks both boxes. He’s rarely hurt despite the physical demands of playing offensive line, and he enters the 2022 season with 37 starts in 45 games played over a four-year college career. His game instantly translated the wide zone rushing attack and he was the anchor of the best offensive line in the Big 12 and the state of Texas in 2022. 

The Impact 

The second most important position on the offensive side of the ball in modern football is left tackle. A quick look at the NFL Draft each year proves that point. Possessing a quality blindside protector is invaluable, and Galvin is as good as they come in college football. He is the preseason Best Offensive Lineman in Texas in the 2022 Dave Campbell’s Texas Football summer magazine. He’ll provide security and protection for starting quarterback Blake Shapen and open running lanes for a new crop of Baylor running backs. Four out of the five starters from Baylor’s 2021 offensive line return, which is a main reason why the Bears were picked by the media to repeat as Big 12 champions in 2022. 

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