Major moment for UNC's Brandon Tate

UNC senior wows even himself

CHAPEL HILL -- Even after catching, speeding and dodging his way to a school-record 397 all-purpose yards on Saturday, it took about four replays for North Carolina wide receiver Brandon Tate to realize "I did some major things."

It helped that he could also see the reactions of teammates Bobby Rome, Richie Rich and Jordan Hemby, who watched with him.

"Their mouths were wide open, eyes big, looking at the screen," Tate said Tuesday, laughing.

Can you blame them?

Three days after the senior had a career-long pass reception (57 yards) and punt return (82 yards) and also matched his career-long rush (54 yards), Tate was still receiving text messages and congratulations -- for the win and his marks.

"I've looked at the tape -- I know I've looked at it at least 10 times -- and I've been amazed at myself, like 'How did I do that?' " he said.

The hope now is that the rest of UNC's opponents, beginning Sept. 11 at Rutgers, won't be able to figure it out, either.

Upon further review, Tate said his favorite play of the night was the first-quarter punt return, because it broke legendary Tar Heel Charlie "Choo Choo" Justice's school record for overall touchdown returns. Justice had five from 1946 to 1949, four on punts and one on a kickoff. Tate has six -- three on punts and three on kickoffs.

His biggest disappointment: the shoestring tackle in the fourth quarter that kept him from setting the ACC record for all-purpose yards. "If not for that, I might have scored again,'' he said.

As it is, Tate -- who has been inspired by former Miami Hurricanes star Devin Hester and former Florida State standout Peter Warrick -- figures more teams might start kicking away from him this season, especially since he is only 483 yards shy of the NCAA record for kickoff return yards.

So he's left pondering if there are any more ways he can put points on the board.

"I'm pretty sure if they give me a chance to throw it, I'll probably get a touchdown," he said, sounding hopeful at the thought.

What about kicking the extra point?

"I can't do that," he insisted.

After all, he has to take a breather at some point.

"The tape doesn't do any justice," sophomore tailback Shaun Draughn said. "Just sitting on the sidelines, just watching, I'm sure it was like a blur. It was amazing, ... but it feels good to be on the field with him, just being able to play with someone of that caliber."