Rashod Bateman opted out, opted back in and is now out again.
The star Gophers receiver announced Wednesday on Twitter that he plans to forgo the rest of the 2020 season and prepare for “the next stage” of his career. This came amid a COVID-19 outbreak for the 2-3 Gophers, who had to cancel Saturday’s rivalry game at Wisconsin.
Bateman was one of the first notable opt-outs back in early August, citing concerns about playing safely in the coronavirus pandemic after becoming sick with COVID-19 himself during the summer. The Big Ten subsequently canceled and then reinstated its season with new safety protocols, including daily testing, that convinced Bateman to return.
He received special dispensation from the NCAA to come back, despite signing with an agency and taking money for housing, training and transportation. The projected first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft hoped for one last hurrah with his teammates while possibly improving his draft stock.
Instead, the Gophers dropped their first two games of the year and have been inconsistent in all facets of the game. Bateman, a 1,000-yard Big Ten Receiver of the Year in 2019, had 472 yards on 36 catches and two scores through five games.
The Gophers first announced a one-day halt to practice Monday night before formally shutting down the team the next day. The team ammounced 15 positive cases, nine players and six staff, with even more presumed positives just awaiting confirmation results.
Returning for the Northwestern game Dec. 5 is in focus, though the other Big Ten teams that have experienced outbreaks, Wisconsin and Maryland, both needed two weeks to control their spread. Beyond Northwestern, just Nebraska on Dec. 12 and a to-be-determined ninth game on Dec. 19, slated as an East-division matchup based on the standings. The potential for a bowl game is nebulous, considering the pandemic has affected the number of games and the eligibility requirements.
Last season, Bateman collected 1,219 yards on 60 passes with 11 touchdowns, part of a fierce receiver tandem with Tyler Johnson, now of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But in the offseason, a bout with COVID-19 gave him similar symptoms to a bad flu, with the addition of losing his sense of taste and smell.
But in the six weeks Bateman was opted out of the team, living off-campus in a downtown Minneapolis condo, he realized just how much he missed his team.
“It was a very lonely time because I wasn’t with my teammates,” Bateman said back in October. “You’re going through everything else in the world. You’re not sure where to look, left or right. I mean, I’ve had a football season every fall for practically my whole life. … And not participating in football in the fall, especially with this team and my brothers here and this staff and this university, it really took a toll on me.”
These past five games are likely Bateman’s last for the Gophers. And he’s made an impact on and off the field. He spoke out on social media after George Floyd’s death under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer this past May and has shared his personal experiences with racism with his team. He also changed his jersey from No. 13 to No. 0 to symbolize zero tolerance for racism.
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November 26, 2020 at 03:34AM
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Rashod Bateman ends his Gophers career by opting out again - Minneapolis Star Tribune
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