Most Important People #6 – Markelle Martin

Photo Attribution: Icon SMI

Who he is: Martin won’t leave the record books in shambles like some of his teammates but it’s hard to remember a time when OSU had somebody this domineering in its secondary. I guess you could say Lucien Antoine but he wasn’t as physically gifted as the 6’1 Martin.

What he does: I loved what Gundy said in his press conference last Friday, “dudes when I played weren’t built like that. He’s 210 pounds, benches 390, runs a 4.5, and when he hits you it feels like a car wreck.” Okay, so he’s not Taylor Mays, but he can absolutely be our version of Mays and man the best secondary in the Big 12.

Where he fits in: You obviously don’t want your safeties to have a ton of tackles (he only had 55 last year) and I expect more of the same this year. It’s weird to think he could end his career with less than 5 picks (he has 3 right now) with how seemingly dominant he’s been. But like I wrote the other day, that’s the curse of being a great defensive back, you don’t get the stats to back it up.

Why he matters: His play is secondary (pun!) to his importance as the rudder of this defense. It’s a squad that’s lacked that in the last few years, a true leader and director of where everyone should be and what they should be doing. He brings something to the table that literally nobody else on the roster can provide, that’s the very definition of what this list is about. Plus, just for fun…

My favorite part is DeForest’s (I think it’s DeForest anyway) arm flying up from the bottom left corner of your screen as if to say “screw you, Houston Nutt!!”

This post is part of our series on the 20 most important people to a 2011 Oklahoma State title run. Check the full list out here.