Upstart running backs are "unbelievable" in replacing Bateman.
Click photo to enlarge Malik Roberson, left, and Marques Rodgers share Serra's... (Brad Graverson Staff Photographer)
As Serra running back Anterio Bateman hobbled off the field with an injured ankle in Week 6 against Cathedral, senior Marques Rodgers walked up to him with a simple message:
"We've got you, bro. We're not going to let you down," Rodgers told him.
For the second straight year, Bateman had sustained a season-ending injury.
However, the tag team of Rodgers and sophomore Malik Roberson has provided Serra with a jolt of energy and optimism heading into a CIF Southern Section Western Division semifinal Friday at Lompoc.
Roberson is nicknamed Red Bull. Rodgers looks as if he's already been playing with wings.
Together they have provided quite a rush.
"They've both been unbelievable," Serra coach Scott Altenberg said. "Our offense was really born around Bateman because he has an ability to do so many different things. We can look like a spread team in some formations and not look like a spread in others.
"Even though we lost Taz, we can still do it with guys who are like him. And they have been amazing."
Roberson has established himself as a premier back with 1,071 yards and 10 touchdowns on 94 carries.
Rodgers, a converted receiver, has 634 yards and nine touchdowns on 66 carries.
They serve as a great complement to quarterback Jalen Greene, who has rushed for 702 yards and eight touchdowns on 98 carries.
"This is not for me. It's for Taz and all the other seniors on this team,"
Roberson said. "I just want to keep it going. I don't want it to get to my head."
Altenberg said it is tough for opponents to prepare for Serra because Rodgers and Roberson have such different running styles.
"Rodgers is a slasher, and Red Bull can be a home-run hitter at any time," Altenberg said. "Game after game, we don't know who's going to have the hot hand. It's like a baseball pitcher throwing strikes. And we rotate like crazy and keep them both fresh for the fourth quarter."
Bateman said he has liked what he has seen from both players.
"It shows we have a lot of athletes here," Bateman said. "Marques is a senior, so I don't have to say much to him. But I've coached Red Bell a whole lot since last year. He's like my little brother. I just try to tell him what other guys told me: keep working hard and be strong-minded. I tell him he can't ever take plays off."
Roberson jumped into the fray last year in Week 10 after Bateman's injury and had 53 yards and a touchdown on six carries in an eye-opening 35-29 win over Chaminade. He added 25 yards on five carries in the first-round loss against Culver City.
It was valuable experience, but Roberson had an admission.
"I was not ready," Roberson said, laughing. "But I made sure I stepped up.
"Now I have confidence playing the game at the high school level."
Rodgers began last season at receiver but switched to running back for the final three games of the regular season. He totaled 150 yards and three touchdowns on 10 carries.
Then Rodgers set the tone for this season with 88 yards and two touchdowns on six carries to help Serra avenge a loss to Notre Dame/Sherman Oaks. He has been remarkably steady since.
"Playing running back at the end of last season really helped me," Rodgers said. "It's been pretty fun playing with Malik and the other guys. Malik's like another half of me. When Taz went down, he was our captain, so we had to step up for the team."
Rodgers said people in Serra's program compare him to former Serra standout Shaquille Richards.
"I'm swifty but little, and I have a great stiff arm," Rodgers said.
Both are track standouts for Serra's vaunted program.
Roberson finished second in the CIF Southern Section Division IV finals last year in the 100 and sixth in the long jump. Rodgers also made the CIF finals in the 100 meters.
Both also ran on the 4x100 relay.
Serra will need to get the most out of its tag team when it plays Lompoc, a team riding a 32-game winning streak.
"We know we can fight," Rodgers said. "They are going to put up a good fight, and we're going to put up a good fight. It should be a good game."
Rodgers' father, Anthony, is a former El Camino College standout who played for the San Diego Chargers in the 1990s. He has a younger sister Myia, 6.
Roberson's mother, Dishawn, played basketball at Compton High. His 7-year-old brother, Shawn, plays soccer.
Both players are enjoying stellar campaigns. And they have done it as a joint-task force.
"It's not a competition between us," Roberson said. "We've had competitive moments, but we're more of a team. We are a brotherhood."
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