Earlier this month, Cooper Bateman, one of the top quarterbacks in the Class of 2013, stated that he hoped “pretty soon” to announce a verbal commitment to one of the finalists that made up his top five.
Bateman this morning did indeed make that non-binding commitment, resulting in the recruiting rich getting that much richer.
In a statement released to members of the media a short time ago, Bateman’s Salt Lake City (Utah) Cottonwood High School offensive coordinator confirmed that the signal-caller has given a verbal to Alabama. Bateman had already visited the Tide once, and had another scheduled for early June.
Apparently, that one wasn’t necessary as far as a decision in the here and now is concerned.
“This has been a great time in my life, I have had the rare opportunity to be able to choose from many great schools that would allow me to get a college degree and continue to play the game that I love,” Bateman’s statement read. “This has been a very difficult decision only because I was able to meet and get to know so many wonderful coaches at so many great universities. I have chosen to attend the University of Alabama. I am honored that I will get to learn from [head coach Nick] Saban and [offensive coordinator Doug] Nussmeier and will get to represent Alabama, the state and the University.
“I want to thank my coaches at Cottonwood for all they have done for me and mostly to my parents who have made this all possible.”
Bateman, who becomes the first QB commit of the Tide’s 2013 class, chose Alabama over finalists that included Auburn, Florida, LSU and Washington. All told, the senior-to-be received more than 50 scholarship offers.
Bateman is rated as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com and the No. 6 pro-style QB in the country by the same service. 247Sports has Bateman as the No. 4 pro-style QB in the country, while Scout.com has him as the No. 4 QB of any kind.
