Fools Gold: Golden Tate Caught Trespassing in Donut Store

            One of the most highly coveted receivers from this years draft, Notre Dame product Golden Tate has been one of those very fortunate Division I athletes to take a drastic turn for the better since his time at the NCAA level. 

            Not that things were going poorly for Tate at Notre Dame.  Tate showed a ton of promise his sophomore year after registering 52 catches for 903 yards and 7 touchdowns.  Not bad for a guy who only started two games his freshman year.

            Tate really took it to another level his junior year, getting named to the AP College Football All-American Team and winning the Biletnikoff Award, an honor reserved for an elite NCAA receiver.  Tate was also the recipient of a 2009 Wide Receiver Trophy at the College Football Performance Awards. 

The superstar eventually went to the Seattle Seahawks during the 2^nd round of the draft, going number 60 overall.  

While no contract details are available at this time, it is safe to say Tate will, at worst, be a millionaire in the next two years.  He is currently 21 years old.

So what is the point of all this background information?

On June 8^th , Tate and a friend were cited for trespassing at Top-Pot Doughnuts, a store known for their dessert treat, maple bars. 

Apparently, the doughnut shop is right below Tate’s new apartment. 

Tate admitted that he and his friend walked into the store at 3:00 AM, after it was closed, and ate a couple doughnuts. 

This story is not getting much press since the police let Tate and his buddy go with a warning, but it is still surprising to let such a dumb decision by a recognized athlete go under the radar.  

I guess Tate is getting a free pass since he is a rookie yet to play an NFL game, but I really do not think it is fair seeing as if the exact same scenario involved someone like Terrell Owens or Chad Ochocinco, the story would never have a chance to die.

You’re a young player with the potential to make a name for yourself as a rookie on the biggest stage possible…yet you decide to steal doughnuts in the off season. 

It just makes no sense to me that you would put your rookie season in jeopardy for something so insignificant.   

Had an arrest occurred, Tate surely would have been suspended for a few games of the upcoming season. The fact that the pair did not even leave money on the table irks me even further. 

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll downplayed the situation, stating the he and Tate “talked about it”, and that Tate has apologized and is remorseful regarding the incident.  

Considering recent reports that Carroll has allegedly been running the OTA sessions like a boot camp, it is a little unexpected to see him so calm. 

            Nevertheless, the real point of the matter is that hopefully Tate really sees this incident as a wake up call, and does not fall down the slippery slope that receivers like Santonio Holmes, Matt Jones, and Vincent Jackson have.