Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate shrugged nonchalantly as he reflected on the expectations he placed on himself entering his sophomore season.
“I feel like now is my time,” Tate said. “If not now, when? I feel like I’m ready.”
Tate is expected to play a larger role in the Buckeyes’ passing game this fall, as Marvin Harrison Jr. is heading to the NFL and Julian Fleming is transferring to Penn State.
Their departures have opened up starting spots on the outside, and Tate, the most used backup receiver last fall, is close to stepping in. He was a frequent target of quarterback Will Howard in preseason practice while playing on offense with the first team.
Tate expects further opportunities for his breakthrough and is not afraid to achieve high goals.
He wants to surpass the 1,000 receiving yards mark, a mark he made clear on Friday that he is aiming for this year.
“Absolutely,” he said.
That would be a big jump for Tate, a Chicago native who caught 18 passes for 264 yards and a touchdown as a freshman last season, but it’s far from unprecedented for receivers at Ohio State.
Three of the Buckeyes’ last four 1,000-yard receivers – including Emeka Egbuka, Marvin Harrison Jr., Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Garrett Wilson – reached that milestone for the first time in their sophomore year.
Had the coronavirus pandemic not led to a shortened season in the Big Ten in 2020, Wilson might have done the same as a sophomore. In just eight games that year, he had 43 receptions for 723 yards and six touchdowns.
Tate has also been noticed since enrolling a semester early at Ohio State University last year. He stood out in spring training with his fluid route running and sure hands, traits that continue to set Brian Hartline apart.
“He runs really well, very, very clean in terms of technique and footwork,” said Hartline, the Buckeyes’ co-offensive coordinator who has coached the position since 2018, “and he’s probably one of the toughest players on the team when it comes to catching the ball in the crowd.”
While Tate has most of his experience as an outside receiver, having played nearly three-quarters of his snaps on the perimeter as a freshman, the 6-foot-3 receiver is versatile enough to move inside when needed.
“It doesn’t matter where you put Carnell,” Hartline said. “He’s going to do his job well, and that’s going to be a competitive advantage.”
Tate is confident he can make an impression in any of these places.
“I’m feeling better everywhere,” he said, “and I feel good.”
Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State University football for The Columbus Dispatch. Follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @joeyrkaufman or send him an email to [email protected].
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