Rashad Bateman News - MinnesotaSportsFan https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/tag/rashad-bateman/ Minnesota sports, but different Thu, 01 Jul 2021 19:33:32 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=32,height=32,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/cropped-cropped-MSF-favicon-1.jpg Rashad Bateman News - MinnesotaSportsFan https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/tag/rashad-bateman/ 32 32 Richard Pitino Needs Rashod Bateman… https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-basketball/richard-pitino-needs-rashod-bateman/ https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-basketball/richard-pitino-needs-rashod-bateman/#respond Fri, 20 Mar 2020 13:10:46 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=22880 Richard Pitino was lucky to escape 2020 with his job. If I had been AD at the University of Minnesota, when the basketball season ended abruptly, I’m not so sure he’d still have it (though firing the leader of your team this offseason, given the coronavirus circumstances, would be a difficult move to make).

But, Richard is still the basketball coach and he still needs more talent to help turn the tide of his program. I wonder if he knows, the game changer he needs… is already on campus. He plays football for PJ Fleck and might be the best wide receiver in the nation.

But he can ball on the basketball court, too.

Look at this skinny kid tearing up the Georgia hardwood. Anyone who has watched Rashod Bateman on the football field, won’t be surprised when they see him jumping through the gym ceiling and piling dunks into faces of unsuspecting children… but holy fuck, look at that touch from deep!

As a kid who won every 3-point contest through Varsity, but rode the bench throughout my high school “career”, I’m blown away. These aren’t pickup games, either. Some of these highlights look like they’re from the Georgia State Tournament, given the crowd size and Georgia Tech logo on the floor… and Bateman is showing up.

That’d make sense too, because Bateman scored 18 points in the championship game of the Georgia State Championship back in 2017, as a Junior, helping Tift County to a title. He was highly sought after in basketball back then too, receiving scholarship offers from places like Penn State and Virginia Tech.

Would it be stupid for Bateman to become a 2-sport athlete this late in his college career, especially when he’ll likely be preparing for the NFL draft when the 2020 football season ends? Yes. But, this is my blog and I want to dream the dreams I want to dream. Do whatever it takes, Little Ricky… you need Rashod Bateman.

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Shoutout to Ryan Burns, who posted this video to the GopherIllustrated.com boards, where I saw it.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

]]> https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-basketball/richard-pitino-needs-rashod-bateman/feed/ 0 Thu, 01 Jul 2021 14:33:32 +0000 Minnesota Gophers Basketball Gophers Outlast Pesky Wildcats as We Officially Shift Focus to Wisconsin… https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/gophers-outlast-pesky-wildcats-as-we-officially-shift-focus-to-wisconsin/ https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/gophers-outlast-pesky-wildcats-as-we-officially-shift-focus-to-wisconsin/#respond Sat, 23 Nov 2019 20:42:32 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=19405 [et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.0.6″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.0.6″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.0.6″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.0.6″]

It was another beautiful November day of football in the Big Ten, late this morning in Evanston, Illinois. The tailgate lots were packed and the crowd was in the stadium and raucous early… Ok, I’m just kidding. This is Northwestern, we’re talking about. Kids who attend Northwestern don’t have time to attend silly football games. These guys/gals have futures to change and dreams to fulfill. When students spend 6 years at Northwestern, they walk away as doctors and lawyers. People who tailgate and attend football games when it’s below 40 degrees, take 6 years to graduate from St. Cloud State University with a Bachelor’s Degree they’ll never use.

So you can be successful, like this kid will be… or you can be like me.

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The Gophers didn’t care how many people were there to watch, they came out of the gates with an apparent need to get the taste that was the Iowa start, out of their mouths immediately. Before the 1st quarter was over, they had two touchdowns on the board (1 passing, 1 rushing) and they were driving again..

..oh, they’d score on that 3rd drive too. It was 21-0 so fast, I started thinking about dinner options. Suddenly, going to the grocery store this afternoon was a possibility.

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That was until the Gophers punt receiving team came out onto the field for their 4th punt return of the half…

The Minnesota special teams’ unit ranks 128 out of 130 FBS teams, according to ESPN FPI. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that comes back to bite us over the next 1.5 months. This is Minnesota… Our history has been built upon being fucked by our own special teams… Anyway, it bit us today. Demetrius Douglas decided not to fair catch a ball that took its first bounce at the 20-yard-line, before bouncing all the way to the 6. The very next play, Tanner Morgan dropped back and was nearly sacked, before throwing the ball to a sideline with nobody near it. He was still in the pocket so the pass was deemed “intentional grounding”, and Morgan was considered sacked for a safety.

At that point, the score was 21-2 and the game was still well in-hand… but the Gopher offense never looked the same again in the 1st half. Instead of driving down the field and cutting through the Northwestern defense like a hot knife through butter, they were now struggling to gain first downs. The same offense that racked up 174 yards and 3 TD’s on 13 plays, in the first 3 drives; ran 5 plays the rest of the half. Those five plays resulted in a punt and one interception…

But, they got the ball back after halftime and things would change drastically.

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Whatever issues the Gophers had moving the ball at the end of the first half, were long forgotten by the time the 3rd quarter rolled around. The Gophers never had to run the punt unit out again, the rest of this game. They were moving the ball efficiently on all fronts. Tanner Morgan finished the game with 4 touchdowns and the three running backs plus Seth Green totalled 212 yards on the ground.

In the passing game, Tanner spread the ball around all game to Rashad Bateman and Tyler Johnson. They both ended with 7 grabs. Bateman got 3 touchdowns so Tanner made sure TJ got more yards, finishing with 125 and just 1 score.

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The only issues in the 2nd half came on the defensive end. After knocking Hunter Johnson out of the game in the first half, Northwestern was down to their 4th QB, Andrew Marty, who they probably should have just started the game with. His threat on the ground and through the air seemed to give the Gophers some headaches. Hunter Johnson left the game with 0 completions on 2 attemps. Marty finished the game 8/10 for 1 TD while also carrying 16 times for 52 yards and 2 scores on the ground.

Hopefully, his success was based more on the lack of preparation time the Gophers had for him, and not anytything we need to worry about for the long term; because we now shift our focus to Wisconsin. They are starting their game right now vs Purdue. If they win, the Gophers will welcome the Badgers to TCF Banks Stadium next weekend, with the Big Ten West on the line… We are venturing into uncharted territory now,  Gopher fam… are you ready?

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Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

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]]> https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/gophers-outlast-pesky-wildcats-as-we-officially-shift-focus-to-wisconsin/feed/ 0 Thu, 01 Jul 2021 14:26:36 +0000 Minnesota Gophers Football Gophers/Morgan Boil Purdue Through 3 Quarters; Almost Lose It in 4th https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/gophers-morgan-boil-purdue-through-3-quarters-almost-lose-it-in-4th/ https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/gophers-morgan-boil-purdue-through-3-quarters-almost-lose-it-in-4th/#respond Sat, 28 Sep 2019 23:05:20 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=18558 [et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.29.3″ fb_built=”1″ _i=”0″ _address=”0″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.29.3″ _i=”0″ _address=”0.0″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.29.3″ _i=”0″ _address=”0.0.0″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.29.3″ _i=”0″ _address=”0.0.0.0″]

I was nervous coming into today. These games worry me the most, because they are ones we need to win, in order to have a successful season. Do I want to beat Wisconsin and Iowa? Sure, but it those games certainly aren’t must-wins. You go in with hope, and sometimes things happen like last year vs Wisconsin. But this game vs Purdue wasn’t like that. The Gophers are better than Purdue and they needed to show it today with a win. If we want to surprise people, we need to be welcoming Nebraska to the bank in 2 weeks at 5-0. 

Well after today, we are only one Illinois (at TCF Bank) beat down away from doing just that.

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I wrote yesterday, that this offensive line needed to be better and that the Gophers would be best-suited if they could establish the run early. Well, this was about all we saw out of the running game in the first 3 quarters, because Tanner Morgan was lit on fire before the opening kick and never cooled off. Add in a few of the best wide receivers in the Big Ten and… well… you get fireworks.

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After the Minnesota onslought that took place for the first 3/4 of this game, Purdue counter-punched hard in the 4th. They even pulled it within 7, with 4 minutes still left on the clock, after a ridiculous onside kick turned into a score. Things were about to get really tight when Tanner Morgan dropped back to pass on 3rd down and couldn’t connect with Tyler Johnson… until a late flag saved the day.

From there, the non-existent run game suddenly found its footing for 2 first downs…. and just as quickly as they had come back, Purdue was gone and the game was over.

Tanner Morgan took a knee to seal the deal, after the best outing of his young career, throwing for 396 yards and 4 touchdowns… I wasn’t even sure he was capable of that performance, if I’m being completely honest.

It should also be noted that Purdue lost their incredibly talented QB and WR (Sindelar, Moore) in the first half, and the injuries didn’t look good. As for how it affected the game, the Gophers were already running up the score when they went down. Hopefully, the injuries weren’t as bad as they looked…

The Boilermaker comeback at the end of this game was weird and I’m not going to hold it over the Gophers’ head as I look back on this win. It was much more decisive that it looked. I can’t wait for Illinois to come to town next week before things really get testy!

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

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]]> https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/gophers-morgan-boil-purdue-through-3-quarters-almost-lose-it-in-4th/feed/ 0 Thu, 01 Jul 2021 14:27:32 +0000 Minnesota Gophers Football