The Athlete Playing Receiver and the Pop Gun Field General

Did u hear Golden Tate was caught stealing donuts?

OMFG.

Donuts.

LOL.

1. 1st and 10 at ND 34 Jimmy Clausen pass complete to Michael Floyd for 10 yards to the NDame 44 for a 1ST down.

Tate is split wide left. He plays this position throughout the drive. He bursts into his release and sprints deep, but does not factor further.

2. 1st and 10 at ND 44 Armando Allen Jr rush for 15 yards to the Pitt 41 for a 1ST down.  

Tate doesn't sell pass particularly well, and between his slow release and clunky no-sell on his route, he has some ground to make up to help his team. He does. He squares and screens 5-9, 180 corner Jovani Chappel. Allen runs off left end for 15 and the first.

3. 1st and 10 at PITT 41 Jimmy Clausen pass complete to Armando Allen Jr for a loss of 5 yards to the Pitt 46.

Clausen fakes a pass towards the left flat and then tucks and curls and attempts to set up a screen. As the play-by-play indicates, the attempt results in failure. Tate is initially jammed but squirms by and curls in the left flat. The Panther corner sits underneath his route. Tate is a dead man.  

4. 2nd and 15 at PITT 46 Jimmy Clausen pass complete to Armando Allen Jr for 2 yards to the Pitt 44.

Another poor release, this time on a pass play. Tate runs a fade into the left flat. It's not a great looking route and that is compounded by the Panthers dedication to sitting underneath and challenging Clausen to beat them over top.  

5. 3rd and 13 at PITT 44 Jimmy Clausen pass complete to Duval Kamara for 14 yards to the Pitt 30 out-of-bounds for a 1ST down.

Four wide, two a side, Tate and mirrored receiver Duval Kamara run 15 yard curl routes on their respective sides. Tate's route sucks. His footwork is deliberate and that's death against quarters coverage. Clausen finds Kamara for the first. 

6. 1st and 10 at PITT 30 Armando Allen Jr rush for 2 yards to the Pitt 28.  

Tate and Michael Floyd motion screen pass but it's a run. Not much to see here.

7. 2nd and 8 at PITT 28 Jimmy Clausen pass incomplete.

Tate pops off the line of scrimmage. At ten yards, he deliberately plants his left foot to begin his cut. Panthers corner Aaron Berry reads the motion and crashes the route, a fade, undercutting and almost picking the pass. It sails high and through Berry and Tate's grasp incomplete.  

8. 3rd and 8 at PITT 28 Jimmy Clausen rush for 5 yards to the Pitt 23.  

Tate sprints deep. Berry passes him onto the deep safety. Clausen scrambles for five.

(Kickoff kicker kicks field goal.)