User:Giants27/Markelle Martin

Markelle Martin (born June 20, 1990 in Wichita Falls, Texas) is an American football free safety for the Oklahoma State University Cowboys. He is considered one of the top safeties eligible for the 2012 NFL Draft.

Early years
Martin attended S. H. Rider High School in his hometown of Wichita Falls. At Rider, he participated in football, basketball, and ran track. As a senior, he recorded 81 tackles and five interceptions and was later named the defensive player of the year in his district. During high school, he also played wide receiver. Rivals.com ranked him as the 15th best safety in the class of 2008, as well as the 201st best player nationally and the 27th best in the state of the Texas, while Scout.com rated him as the 101st best wide receiver. He was recruited by Oklahoma State University, Kansas State University, the University of Oklahoma, the University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, and Texas Tech University, before eventually choosing Oklahoma State on December 14, 2007.

College career
As a freshman, Martin saw limited playing time, recording just four tackles and four blocked passes in 11 games for Oklahoma State. In his sophomore season, he once again played in 11 games, but saw his playing time increase as he recorded 45 tackles, fifth highest on the team, and 11 blocked passes, which was second highest on the team. Against Oklahoma and Texas Tech, Martin tallied six tackles and in the 2010 Cotton Bowl against Ole Miss, he recorded nine tackles and one deflected pass.