Northwestern cornerback Deante Battle took the time to answer some questions with FFLiveWire's Luke Nicholson about his training, college career, and similarities to Antoine Winfield.Luke Nicholson: Who is your biggest role model? Why?
Deante Battle: My parents, they have been there to support me thru everything and provided me with the tools to not only be successful on the field, but off the field as well.
Luke Nicholson: What is your greatest football moment to date?
Deante Battle: In 2004 when we beat Ohio State, they were ranked in the top ten at the time, and just seeing the fans rush the field was an awesome feeling.
Luke Nicholson: During your career at Northwestern, what did your typical day during football season consist of?
Deante Battle: 6 AM meetings, 7 AM practice, 12 lift classes and film again around 6pm. Not much time for anything but football.
Luke Nicholson: What sports did you participate in during high school and how have they helped you to become a better player on the football field?
Deante Battle: Well I ran summer track and speed can never hurt you as a cornerback.
Luke Nicholson: What influenced you to attend Northwestern over other schools?
Deante Battle: I just thought it was a great opportunity to not only play Big Ten football but also get a great education. Many people ask why did I pick Northwestern over other big football schools that I had offers from. My parents always say you need that degree to fall back on if football doesn’t work and Northwestern offers the best of both worlds in my opinion.
Luke Nicholson: Who is the best player you have faced during your career?
Deante Battle: Well I’ve played against so many good receivers ranging from Mario Manningham, Jason Avant, Ted Ginn, Anthony Gonzalez, Santonio Holmes and Dorien Bryant just to name a few, but if I had to choose one I’d say Avant was the most complete receiver I have faced.
Luke Nicholson: How has playing with Reggie McPherson helped your development and do you see a future in the NFL for your teammate?
Deante Battle: It helped a lot. I learned how just simple communication could change the outcome of games. If I thought I had an opposing teams tendency figured out and I wanted to jump a route, I’d let him know and he could protect me in case I was off that play. Reggie Mac definitely has a chance to play in the NFL, he’s a smart player and also has great ball skills after moving from receiver after our red-shirt year.
Luke Nicholson: If you could have any super power, what would you choose? Why?
Deante Battle: The ability to stop time...times the one thing u can’t get back and having a few extra hrs to the day could make life less hectic.
Luke Nicholson: What one thing do you have to work on the most to excel at the NFL level?
Deante Battle: I’d say my ball skills, I can catch no problem but I definitely dropped a couple picks over my career because I was trying to catch with my body as opposed to my hands.
Luke Nicholson: What current NFL player does your game most resemble?
Deante Battle: Antoine Winfield...I started hearing the comparisons from Ohio State fans so I decided to take a deeper look at his play and I'm around his size and we are both very physical corners...not afraid to go and make big hits.
Luke Nicholson: If someone decided to make a movie about your life, what actor would play you and what would the movie be titled?
Deante Battle: The title would be "Keep Pushing" just because I’ve been doubted so many times because of my size and I’d definitely like to play myself.
Luke Nicholson: What are you doing to prepare for your Pro Day?
Deante Battle: I’m working out at Wellness Performance Institute in Georgia. Its about thirty guys here all with the same purpose...the NFL. We have guys ranging from 1st round picks all the way to free agents. It’s great being here with players from all over the country such as DL DeMario Pressley from NC State, Kregg Lumpkin from UGA, Travis Brown from New Mexico, Alan Turner from Southern Illinois and even the Walter Payton award winner Jayson Foster from Georgia Southern.
Luke Nicholson: Which teams have expressed interest in you at this point?
Deante Battle: To tell the truth, when scouts came in during the season I rarely paid attention to what team they were from.
Luke Nicholson: Is there a specific team you hope to play for?
Deante Battle: I have no preference; I just want the opportunity to showcase my skills, although warm weather would be a plus.
Luke Nicholson: Are you a cat or a dog? Why?
Deante Battle: I’d say cat because I’m very agile and quick. Those are qualities that definitely help me on the field.
Luke Nicholson: Outside of football, what are some of your hobbies?
Deante Battle: I just like to hang out with friends and that usually means playing video games. Madden or NCAA.
Luke Nicholson: Why should a NFL team select you over other cornerbacks in this draft?
Deante Battle: I feel I have the complete package good cover skills but also will come up and make a big hit. I think when the scouts take a look at my files they will see I have a lot of skills and I can do a lot of things such as play the nickel which I played a lot of in my career.
Luke Nicholson: What are your plans for your career after football?
Deante Battle: One of my friends have been talking to me about investment banking, that’s what he has gotten into and from what I’ve heard I’m very interested.
Luke Nicholson: If you could intercept any NFL quarterback, who would you choose? Why?
Deante Battle: Peyton Manning, I say if you have a choice you might as well choose the best QB there is.
Luke Nicholson: Finish the following sentence: Deante Battle is faster than…
Deante Battle: the majority of the people in the world...lol.
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