USC Football: Scouting 2024 Safety Commit Marquis Gallegos

The So-Cal native might have the highest floor of any Trojan commit in the 2024 class.

Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, CA) safety Marquis Gallegos committed to USC back in June and has capped his high school career off with an excellent senior season that saw his team go 11-1, with their only loss coming to national powerhouse Mater Dei. Gallegos is one of two safeties committed to the Trojan’s 2024 recruiting class, the other being Clearwater (Clearwater, FL) product Jarvis Boatwright.

Gallegos is the 22nd-best safety in the country, according to ESPN, and the 216th-best recruit in the country for the class of 2024.

We decided to break down his junior season Hudl film to get a better feel for what Gallegos' strengths are as a safety, and how soon he may be able to make a difference for a struggling Trojan defense.

Gallegos measure in at 6-1, 175 pounds, which is a solid size for the safety position. The first thing that stuck out to us was his confidence and vision as the last line of defense for Sierra Canyon. He's got excellent ball skills and is always looking for opportunities to bait quarterbacks into mistakes.

Better at breaking downhill on passes than he is at turning his hips and running back, but aren’t we all? Should improve with time and drilling at the next level. Definitely not afraid to come up into the box and film running lanes. Looks like a fundamentally sound tackler, and plays with elite effort.

As far as his polish as a prospect, we see a sure tackler with greate athleticism and instinct to spare. He, in our opinion has a very high floor as a difference maker at the college level. Look for Gallegos to come in on special teams year one and prove himself.

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