Bateman caught 56 passes for 825 yards and five touchdowns in his junior season and committed to play college football at the University of Minnesota the following summer upon receiving a scholarship offer from the school.
[2] Bateman's productive senior season led to him receiving late recruiting interest from many top-level college programs, but he chose to stick to his commitment to Minnesota.
[4][5] As a sophomore, Bateman was named a semi-finalist for the Fred Biletnikoff Award and first team All-Big Ten with teammate Tyler Johnson (the first time teammates shared wide receiver honors) and the Richter–Howard Receiver of the Year after catching 57 passes for sophomore records of 1,170 yards (20.5 yards per catch, second all time to Johnson) and 11 touchdowns.
[9] On August 4, 2020, Bateman announced that he would forgo his 2020 season due to the Big Ten's decision to not play football during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Week 16 against the Cincinnati Bengals, Bateman scored his first NFL touchdown on a 4-yard pass from Josh Johnson in the 41–21 loss.
[22] Bateman became a full-time starting wide receiver along with Devin Duvernay following the trade of Marquise Brown to the Arizona Cardinals during the offseason.
In Week 18 against the Cleveland Browns, Bateman recorded 8 receptions for 80 yards and a touchdown as the Ravens would win 35-10, clinching the AFC North for the second year in a row.