Marcus Tate Commits to the Clemson Tigers

Marcus Tate (6’4.5, 325) has committed to the Clemson Tigers. Marcus is an offensive tackle from University School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. This is the fifth commitment in the class and the second commitment in two days—also the second offensive line commitment in two days. This should vault Clemson near the top of the 2021 recruiting rankings, although it is too early to care about other than claiming momentum. Tate is ranked as the composite 107th overall player. I actually think he ends up in 75 range before too long. Rivals has a ranking of 151 that should get updated and give him a bump into the top 100 in the composite.

Tate was recruited heavily by most Southeast schools and had an offer list of Florida, Florida State, LSU, Alabama, Tennessee, Ohio State, Miami and many others. He released a top ten with Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, LSU, Miami, Ohio State, and Oregon. His top five or six probably would’ve been Florida, maybe Miami, LSU, Bama, Clemson and maybe Ohio State. He advanced his recruitment quickly, however, and after his visit to Clemson for the A&M game he was ready to shut it down. This recruitment is also important because Clemson reached down into Florida, yet again, and pulled out who they wanted—and there was nothing Florida and Dan Mullen could do to stop it.

Tate visited with family and has some relatives in the Atlanta, Georgia area. I actually thought Tate was going to be the first offensive line commitment in the class, but Linthicum beat him to the punch.

WHAT DOES CLEMSON GET

The first question is whether Tate can stick at Tackle or will he eventually play Guard in college. He has a wide body and I can see analysts saying he is ideally suited to play guard, but I think he can stick at Right Tackle, especially in Clemson’s system. Clemson will desperately need Tackle depth from the 2020 and 2021 class—particularly if Jackson Carman goes pro after his junior season. Tate gives you a good blend of size and athleticism. Key to his progression is cutting some bad weight this offseason. He plays with a strong base and doesn’t get knocked off balance easily. I also see a really good initially punch and decent feet. He ran a really slow 40 time at the opening, but the reduced weight and increased agility make that less of an issue.

Clemson will need Tate to contribute right away in the two deep if he can stick at Tackle. Regardless, the upside is evident and two years ago we would’ve all been cheering extremely loud for a top 100 offensive tackle. This is a good get this early in the recruiting season. With Tate in the fold and the pursuit of Burton continuing, Clemson can focus on landing a big fish (preferably another Tackle) or pocketing the scholarship for another year.