By Brian Hamilton
In three seasons at Notre Dame, Jimmy Clausen and Golden Tate won 16 games and played in one obscure bowl. It was hardly the echo-waking either envisioned when they arrived on campus, but unfinished business could not compare to perfect timing for an NFL leap.
So both players made official today what most expected since the middle of the 2009 season: They will skip their senior seasons at Notre Dame and head to the professional ranks.
In three seasons at Notre Dame, Jimmy Clausen and Golden Tate won 16 games and played in one obscure bowl. It was hardly the echo-waking either envisioned when they arrived on campus, but unfinished business could not compare to perfect timing for an NFL leap.
So both players made official today what most expected since the middle of the 2009 season: They will skip their senior seasons at Notre Dame and head to the professional ranks.
"When you come to a college program, you go to win a national
championship and win as many games as you can," Clausen said at a news
conference. "We didn't do that, we didn't reach our full
potential. At same time, this is the next step in our lives. It's time
for us to move on."
It's hard to argue with that, which is probably what former Irish coach Charlie Weis -- who sat with the players today at their request, but did not make any comments -- told both Clausen and Tate last week.
In fact, it's precisely what Weis told Clausen, who threw for 3,722 yards and 28 touchdowns in 2009. According to Clausen, when the two sat down last week, Weis "just told me I'm ready to go."
"I just hope that I left this place better than I found it," Clausen said. "I've met so many great people here. I hope they can say that about me. I've had a special time here. When I think about not being here next semester and next year, it gives me chills. I was a great time in my life, I couldn't ask for anything more."
Tate, too, felt there was little left to accomplish individually, after 93 catches and 1,493 receiving yards and 18 total touchdowns. It is a miraculous climb from his freshman season, when Tate barely could run a route correctly.
"With the year I had this year, it was kind of hard to stay," Tate said. "To be honest, I don't think I can do much better next year or any year in college. The time was right."
It's hard to argue with that, which is probably what former Irish coach Charlie Weis -- who sat with the players today at their request, but did not make any comments -- told both Clausen and Tate last week.
In fact, it's precisely what Weis told Clausen, who threw for 3,722 yards and 28 touchdowns in 2009. According to Clausen, when the two sat down last week, Weis "just told me I'm ready to go."
"I just hope that I left this place better than I found it," Clausen said. "I've met so many great people here. I hope they can say that about me. I've had a special time here. When I think about not being here next semester and next year, it gives me chills. I was a great time in my life, I couldn't ask for anything more."
Tate, too, felt there was little left to accomplish individually, after 93 catches and 1,493 receiving yards and 18 total touchdowns. It is a miraculous climb from his freshman season, when Tate barely could run a route correctly.
"With the year I had this year, it was kind of hard to stay," Tate said. "To be honest, I don't think I can do much better next year or any year in college. The time was right."
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