Paulsboro’s Bateman Made Impressive Final Impression
Naseer Bateman was all smiles after his final high school football game, and for good reason.
Bateman, a graduating senior linebacker from Paulsboro, was all over the field after he led the White team to a 26-13 win over the Blue in the Adam Taliaferro Foundation/South Jersey Football Coaches Association All-Star Classic on June 29 at Rowan University.
Bateman, a graduating senior linebacker from Paulsboro, was all over the field after he led the White team to a 26-13 win over the Blue in the Adam Taliaferro Foundation/South Jersey Football Coaches Association All-Star Classic on June 29 at Rowan University.
Simply put, Bateman couldn’t be consistently blocked. On one series he had a sack and an interception after the Blue had taken over inside the White 10-yard line following a turnover.
The 5-foot-11, 185-pound Bateman showed great speed and instinct. What is interesting is that it was the second straight game that he won a big event at Rowan University.
In his final high school game for Paulsboro, Bateman played a major role in leading Paulsboro to a 34-24 victory over Penn Grove in the South Jersey Group 1 title game at Rowan.
Against the Red Devils, Bateman had 13 tackles, including eight solos and one tackle for loss in a superlative defensive effort.
His best memory of the championship was an obvious one.
“Holding the trophy at the end and seeing all my team celebrate and come together, it was awesome,” he said following the all-star game.
For Bateman, the Group 1 championship game was a continuation of an outstanding senior year in which he earned first-team conference in the WJFL Memorial Division. He finished with 136 tackles, including 87 solo and six tackles for loss.
So Bateman was extremely anxious to get one more shot to play football land his enthusiasm and production were evident.
“I was into this game,” he said about the all-star affair. “I wanted to put on a show so everybody can remember me.”
Consider it done.
Now it is on to the next level for Bateman.
He will attend ASA College, a junior college in Brooklyn New York. This is a high-profile school for football players with many players moving on to the Division I ranks afterwards.
“I am going to try out for the football taem and I have to work really hard because they have some good talent,” he said. “I am looking forward to the challenge.”
Heading into college he will have the confidence knowing that he stood out while performing against many of South Jersey’s top graduating seniors.
“That came from me working every day and taking no days off,” he said. “My trainer helped me with my speed, strength, lateral quickness and I went into the game feeling so good.”
The same way he hopes to feel when he heads to ASA on July 23.
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© SouthJersey.com 2018. All rights reserved. This article or parts thereof may not be reprinted or reproduced by any other party without the express written consent of SouthJersey.com. For more information, please call 856-797-9910.
For more Local Sports features, visit our South Jersey Sports page.
Author: Marc Narducci
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