Texas A&M Football Portal Profiles: Marcus Ratcliffe Brings Stud Safety Potential

Marcus Ratcliffe Brings Intrigue to Defensive Backfield for Texas A&M Football

Without a doubt, the position for Texas A&M football that took the biggest jump in the offseason was the defensive backs. After several years in a row where Aggie fans seemed to constantly be sweating out the question of who would start in the secondary, the Maroon and White now have a wealth of talent at both safety and corner.

One of the more intriguing options of the new adds is former San Diego State safety Marcus Ratcliffe. Ratcliffe played one season for the Aztecs before opting for the portal, and he had initially committed to UCLA before Mike Elko and Ish Aristide pulled off the flip.

So what are they getting in Ratcliffe? At 6'3" and 210 after just one year in college, he certainly cuts an imposing figure on the back end of the defense, leveraging his physicality into intimidating play when he's on the field. In other words, this is a guy who isn't afraid to lay the wood against opposing receivers and ball carriers.

His physical talent led him to start 11 out of 12 games for the Aztecs, recording 51 tackles, 1.5 TFLs, 1 PBU, and 1 INT. He was also named Freshman of the Week for the Mountain West after a big game against Fresno State on the final week of the regular season.

This standout year as a freshman is what gave him the bump in rating from a three-star to a four-star when he entered the transfer portal, and put him on the radar of some of the top Power 5 teams in the nation. It was Texas A&M football where he chose to make his home, however, and the Aggies are much better for it.

Given the talent that the Aggies have at safety, it's going to be tough to crack the rotation—especially for a younger player. Even so, the length and physicality that Ratcliffe provides on the back end give him a specialized use in rotation at the nickel spot. It's likely that Bryce Anderson starts there, but the versatility that Ratcliffe brings could see him come in on some dime packages as a safety/linebacker hybrid.

Overall, Ratcliffe brings exciting potential and a bright future to College Station. Elko's history of success with defensive backs had to play a major part here, and I'm sure that he will unlock the best out of the new arrival to the Aggies once he gets on the field—which I think will happen in short order.