There is a criteria for this page- it only includes those from Alamance County who are currently playing at the professional level, as in NFL, NBA, NHL (including the AHL), MLB (including the Triple A minor league level), Olympic, and other high levels of competition.  College and high school athletes will not be included.

Currently, there is only one athlete from Alamance county playing pro sports- Cincinnati Bengals return man Brandon Tate.

Brandon Tate- Wide Receiver- Cincinnati Bengals

Brandon Tate was born and raised in Burlington, NC.  He attended Hugh M. Cummings High School in Burlington and was recruited to play football at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2005-2008.  

It was obvious that Tate was a special player coming right out of high school. He played in every single game during his freshman year, and finished 2nd in the Atlantic Coast Conference for kick returns, and 3rd for punt returns.  Throughout Tate's four years at UNC, he ran for 3,523 return yards and had 1221 rushing and receiving yards with 16 combined touchdowns.  Tate's 3,523 were one of the things that helped his draft stock incredibly.  In the 2009 NFL Draft, Tate was selected in the third round (83rd pick) by the New England Patriots.

NFL Career- New England Patriots

Tate was signed by the New England Patriots and began his career in 2009.  Tate played very little his first year in the league, but was finally let onto the field on October 24th.  His first season, however, was short lived.  In November, he suffered a knee injury against the Miami Dolphins and was placed on injured reserve for the remainder of the season. Tate would play his first full NFL season in 2010 with the Patriots. His sophomore season was when Tate became a solid NFL starter, playing in all 16 games and starting in 10 of them.  Tate finished the season with 24 catches for 432 yards, three receiving touchdowns on offense, and 1,057 kick return yards on 41 returns, with two touchdowns.  Despite a strong second year in the Patriots high tempo offense, the sheer amount of talent on the team led to Tate's release on September 3rd, 2011.

NFL Career- Cincinnati Bengals

Tate has had a considerably successful career with the Bengals so far since being signed in 2011.  The Bengals moved him to returning punts and kicks.  In the kick-off return, he has yet to score a touchdown since arriving in Cincinnati. He has, however, run 2,702 yards on returns, yet never more than 1,000 yards in a single season.  Tate has done slightly better on punt returns, covering 1,066 yards and scoring one touchdown in 2011.  

NFL Stats- Kickoff and punt returns

Kickoff returns                             

                                                   GP  Rtrns  YDS     AVG    

Punt returns

Comments