For some reason, Marcus Foster is as under-the-radar recruit as you’ll find in the 2012 class. This despite ranking a 4-Star recruit on ESPN, owning a very impressive highlight reel (see below), and absolutely blowing up the camps and combines he has attended. Recruiting services like Scout and Rivals don’t seem to want to give him the kind of accolades I think he deserves and as of this evaluation owns a BCS offer from only Cincinnati. Well, their loss will be Coach Jones and Coombs’ gain as they are getting a terrific defensive player. He seems a very solid verbal to UC at this point and hopefully sticks around to sign in February as his recruitment will likely explode during his senior year.
Overview
Foster plays both sides of the ball but I’ll focus on the defensive side where he really shines. The high school game seems too slow for him at this point. He makes plays on the ball like he’s inside the quarterback’s head. From a coverage standpoint, he does well in man coverage sticking to his assignment like glue. If he happens to lose the receiver he recovers quickly and attacks the ball well. You can see some of that here back to back starting at the :56 mark. As a safety he’s required to understand the routes and follow the quarterback’s eyes, which he seems to have mastered. See what I mean when he seems to know what play is being ran. Foster also throws his 190 lbs body around well. He’s reminds me a lot like Haruki Nakamura physically and, honestly, Cincinnati has been missing that threat back there for a while. His abilities get into the heads of quarterbacks and force them to at least subconsciously keep him in mind when throwing a pass. This leads to errant throws and hopefully picks. Wide receivers when running across the middle will always have to be wary that Foster is just seconds from blowing them up. He’s just the complete package for a safety.
Outlook
As I mentioned he’s a general defensive back in high school and could project to an average cornerback because of his hip inflexibility at the next level. But he could be an outstanding safety for the Bearcats, and that’s where he’ll play when he steps on the field in 2012. Furthermore, the cornerback position will be a logjam for Cincinnati with Battle, Drane, Witty, Cheatham, and maybe Johnson and Orr if they wind up there. Not to mention that Alex Dale and Drake Bruns (both cornerbacks) are arriving in the same class. It’s possible that Foster could slide in at nickleback behind Chris Williams but I think it would be best for him to stick to safety. Unlike most players in the secondary, I see Foster seeing playing time as a true freshman. Drew Frey (despite my protests) will probably be the starting strong safety in 2012 as a senior but free safety Wes Richardson will have graduated. Malcolm Murray is listed as his backup but you never know how he will progress from the JUCO world to a Division-1 FBS program.
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