JIMMY CLAUSEN GOING PRO, SET TO ANNOUNCE IN CANTON

Following his announcement of his commitment 4 years ago to the University of Notre Dame at the College Football Hall of Fame, Sportscrack has learned exclusively that QB Jimmy Clausen will declare for the NFL today at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Jimmy followed in the great steps his brothers laid down in college by not winning many games in college. Of course one should blame the defense at Notre Dame for the 6 losses this season and not Jimmy who was nothing less than spectacular all season. Jimmy finished with 3722 yards passing with 28 TDs and only 4 INTs in 12 games and a completion percentage of 68%. He will go on to make millions upon millions in the NFL on a horrible franchise because in all likelihood he will be drafted in the top 10 in the NFL's April Draft.

Personally I have mixed feelings in regards to Clausen leaving and his place in history at Notre Dame. We all know he was one of the most hyped prep quarterbacks to come into the college game. Some people called him the "Lebron James of football" whether it was fair or not. After watching him play for 3 seasons I can safely say he lived up to the hype. His accuracy was deadly and in every game minus the Nevada and Washington State games he needed to be nearly perfect just to keep Notre Dame in the games and he rose up each time. It was never his fault the running game was pretty much nonexistent during Charlie Weis's tenure or the defense couldn't tackle or prevent freshman quarterbacks from tearing them up. It's surreal to see him leave with a 16-21 record while wearing the blue and gold during his 3 seasons. His record in high school was undefeated but in college all he knew was defeats.

I can't blame him for leaving early. He is ready for the NFL. True he could be a little bigger and a little more nimble (part of that is to do with the turf toe he played with all season) but the guy has the arm, accuracy and the smarts to be a successful NFL quarterback for a long time. Hopefully when he declares for the NFL he doesn't make wild proclamations of championships and MVP's are for him only. If anything playing at Notre Dame should humble you. God knows the last 3 seasons of Jimmy ball have been nothing but humbling. It would have been nice to see him play in one more game but the Notre Dame players decided to skip their bowl game once Weis was fired. Why I have no idea. You have to wonder how much Jimmy's influence had as a captain on deciding not to play one more game in his college career and go out a winner instead of a 4 game winning streak. He came in with his head high (lots of gel) and leaves with a black eye (literally). This is how I will remember Jimmy's legacy at Notre Dame.