In one of the first major recruiting battles of the P.J. Fleck era, the Gophers managed to fend off SEC powers to land four-star wide receiver Rashod Bateman. Not many people realized it at the time, but this was a visionary move.
Bateman, a pure athlete from Georgia was under recruited during the early stages of his high school career. He was a powerhouse basketball player with offers from Virginia Tech and Penn State, but football was his sport. P.J. Fleck and the coaching staff hosted a satellite camp in Georgia and were impressed with his skill-set. They offered him on the spot and Bateman quickly committed. Little did the Gophers know, they were in on the ground floor before SEC powers came knocking on the door.
Georgia, Tennessee and Texas A&M offered Bateman in mid-December, but he never wavered from his commitment to the Gophers. He had a smaller sample size of snaps early in his football career, which allowed him to fly under-the-radar. The Minnesota coaches valued an on-field workout and offered him before he burst onto the scene during his senior year. He posted 83 catches for 1,539 yards and 21 touchdowns last year and was a First Team All-State selection in Georgia. Following his final high school campaign, he was elevated to a four-star level on the recruiting websites and represented USA Football in the international games.
Winning this recruiting battle, was a huge moment for a Gophers team in need of dynamic weapons at skill positions. If you watched any games during the late stages of 2017, it isn’t hard to tell the Gophers needed athletes at wide receiver. Bateman certainly fits this description and will make an instant impact in Minnesota. One of the contributing factors to the Gophers’ struggling passing game last year was an inability to gain vertical separation at the wide receiver position. Bateman is one player who could make an immediate impact from the 2018 recruiting class.
He showed off his vertical playmaking skills at Tift County High School in Georgia and was the man behind some of the team’s most explosive plays. Bateman was the one player the quarterback could target deep to make a big play. Every offense needs this type of wide receiver, but Bateman is more nuanced. He doesn’t simply win off athletic ability, but he has a route tree which far exceeds the ability of most wide receivers. He gets separation because of his short range quickness, angles and movement in-and-out of breaks. He does an excellent job of sinking his hips and then taking the correct angle. Whether it’s a post, corner route, curl, hitch dig or out, Bateman shows off his ability to get open consistently. The play below shows Bateman beating off coverage and snapping off his corner route for an easy pitch and catch. Bateman can plant, explode and come back on the ball in an instant.
This is the type of route running Bateman can continue to build upon under the instruction of wide receivers coach Matt Simon.
In addition, Bateman has the feet to win with his starts and gets enough space to work. He then uses his speed and ball skills to make plays. This is particularly the case when cornerbacks are playing tight coverage and he has to beat physicality to get open over the top. When he was getting outside release, he used a head fake and his feet to get separation vertically. In the clip below, you can see Bateman win with his feet to gain outside release.
He also isn’t afraid to use his hands/physicality to win, as shown in the example below. Bateman hand fights and then tracks the ball for a long touchdown.
Not only that, but Bateman will also mix in a double move to slow up defensive backs in the third level. His combination of speed, movement in out of his breaks and feet make him a tough matchup for defenses. The example shows all of that coming together to freeze a defensive back out of his backpedal/turn.
He also is the type of player who can be flexed into the slot to create additional mismatches. With his overall speed and route running skills, he has the feet to get open against speedy nickel cornerbacks. This versatility is an asset for the offense because the Gophers can manufacture the best situations for junior Tyler Johnson, redshirt freshman Chris Autman-Bell and Demetrius Douglas. All of those players provide flexibility due to their varying skill-sets. This is a luxury the Gophers haven’t had recently due to the depth available at the position. As I’ve noted recently, it really limited what the Gophers could do offensively last season.
Bateman will complement Johnson well and can be used in RPO plays to get him in space. He was very explosive on bubble, flare and tunnel screens at the high school level. Bateman had the field vision and elusiveness to create big plays. This is where you really notice how much athleticism he possesses. The two examples below show how explosive Bateman can be in the screen game.
A star basketball player, Bateman’s broad and vertical jumps would certainly test high. His basketball film features him dunking over other players and driving down the lane to finish in the air. The leaping ability and footwork on the hardwood can translate to the football field in so many ways.
Finally, one of the best aspects of his game are his ball tracking skills. He played with a quarterback who often left passes short or long. Bateman managed to track those and finish grabs in traffic. The play below forced him to beat the defensive back at the catch point and finish the diving catch.
During several of those instances, it resulted in tip grabs or contested catches he often won. The example below is just one film cut:
All of this ability makes Bateman one of the most intriguing players to watch as the Gophers enter 2018. From a film and talent standpoint, Rashod Bateman is one of the best players this program has landed in recent memory. He is the type of player this coaching staff could elevate into a future NFL talent.
If he had a larger sample size early in high school, Minnesota might never have been in a position to land him. It shows the value of hosting satellite camps to find players who are overlooked in other regions. Now, the Gophers have a receiver to create much-needed offensive firepower alongside veteran Tyler Johnson. Depending upon his role, he could be one of the young surprises in the Big Ten in 2018.
If Rashod Bateman lives up to his full potential, big programs in the SEC will be upset they missed an opportunity to land one of the best athletes in the region.