Maurice Tate is well known for his offensive prowess on the football field. Give him the ball, and you can watch him cut a swatch through a defensive backfield as well-defined as the first row cut by the lawn mower on a Sunday afternoon.

On Friday against Holy Spirit, Tate showed his defensive skills as well, plucking a Titan pass that caromed off of teammate Joe Johnson Jr. and taking it 40 yards for one of many Patriot scores.

Tate’s defensive skills shone again when he scooped up a Holy Spirit fumble and rambled 27 yards into the endzone.

Two defensive touchdowns will put any player on the short list for Player of the Week. Add to that three offensive TDs, and there is practically no competition for the honor.

On offense, Tate ran 12 times for 109 yards, so on one out of every four carries, he scored a touchdown.

Linden’s Maurice Tate had an outstanding game against a team that came to town undefeated and went back to Tuscaloosa thoroughly defeated. Five touchdowns — two on defense — and a major part in LHS’s 41 points in the last 5:23 of the first half place him among the best performances on the gridiron this year.

He is all-county. He is all-region.

He is all-Tate.