Tate brings the pain

Super Bowl XXXVII wasn't exactly the most memorable championship game. Most football fans can't even remember who won without thinking for a few minutes (Tampa Bay defeated Oakland, 48-21). But even if fans don't recall the game itself, they probably do remember "Terrible" Terry Tate: Office Linebacker. Yes, the popular commercial that gave us "it's pain time" and "the Pain Train is comin'" made its debut during the 2003 Super Bowl and became water-cooler fodder over the proceeding months.

Six years later, there's a Terry Tate incarnate on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Granted, Stephen Decatur's Delonte Tate isn't a linebacker (he's a safety), and he isn't 250 pounds of rock-solid muscle (he's 170 pounds of long, lean muscle). But he does share more with the Pain Train than the same surname. Mainly, Delonte Tate can lay the wood … and he does his work on an actual football field.

"Ever since he was a little pup, he could always come up and smack you," said Decatur's coach Bob Knox. "No matter how big you were, he was going to come up and hit you."

Tate is a strong safety cut from the same mold as Bob Sanders and Roy Williams: He's known more for his resonating hits than his pass coverage. On most plays, Tate will creep up towards the line of scrimmage and sniff out a running back. At the snap of the ball, he'll either shoot the gap and drop his man in the backfield or dart outside and track down the 'back in the open field. Either way, the running back is going down.

"He's got a nose for the football and he puts his body into his hits," Knox said. "He's not going to go low. He's going to be at your thighs and chest."

Against Kent Island last season, the running back ran a power sweep to the left. The Decatur linebackers funneled the play inside, allowing Tate a clear lane to the ball carrier. The ensuing hit reverberated through the stadium.

"He just nailed him and stopped him in his tracks," Knox said.

Tate recalls his game against Queen Anne's High where the running back kept trying to run dive plays into the center of Decatur's defense.

"I just kept stuffing him over and over and over," Tate said.

Opposing players and coaches obviously remembered Tate's hits. In each of the last two seasons the 5-foot-10, 170-pound junior with 4.6 speed has been named First Team All-Bayside Conference. Last season he racked up 58 tackles and an interception; the year before he had 90 tackles.

But even though his numbers dropped off from two years ago, Knox said Tate has gotten better. He's become a more complete safety rather than just a tackling machine.

"As sophomore you could full him with play action, but now he's seeing the bigger picture," Knox said. "He's stating to recognize formations and motions. He's adjusting to offenses and his tackling angles are getting better."

Tate is still raw in pass coverage, however. He has a tendency to get beat with deep balls, mainly because he's looking to come up and make a tackle. His hips -- turning and reacting to a play -- and footwork also need improvement, according to Knox.

"I have to do better at dropping deep and reading offenses," Tate said. "I'm running ladders, backpedaling and doing a few more drills so I can get better."

Until Tate proves he's a more than just a hitter, he's not likely to get any scholarship offers from Division I schools. His size won't help him much either.

"If he was bigger I could see him playing Division I," Knox said. "But the big-time schools want safeties to be 215, 220 pounds. … He's probably I-AA."

Even so, Tate has received at least preliminary interest from Division I schools like Connecticut, Rutgers and Vanderbilt. In order to ratchet up that interest, he's planning on visiting several schools for one-day camps, including Rutgers, Boston College and his favorite, Maryland.

If Tate keeps bringing the pain, maybe Ralph Friedgen, James Franklin and Co. will give him a look.

"I'm a Division I player," Tate said. "I just have to work hard and keep pushing myself."