Jimmy Clausen,Golden Tate, say adios to the Irish

Following the advice of deposed Irish coach Charlie Weis, Jimmy Clausen has decided to forgo his senior season and enter this April's draft. Rated as perhaps the top quarterback in this year's class, he is believed to be coveted by St. Louis, Cleveland and Washington -- three teams that will conceivably pick in the top five.

He'll be joined in the draft by Irish receiver Golden Tate, pound-for-pound the best Notre Dame player of the post-Lou Holtz malaise of the last 13 years. Tate is a virtual shoo-in to win the Biletnikoff Award as the best receiver in the country, and he deserves it for his hyper-productive run over the second half of the season
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Notre Dame official: Jimmy Clausen ‘victim of a sucker punch’

SUCKER PUNCHED ! ! !

According to the Boston Herald.........Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen was sporting a black eye behind the tinted visor he wore to practice Tuesday.
According to a university official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the matter, Clausen was punched outside a South Bend bar early Sunday morning.
Clausen was at C.J.’s Pub about 2 a.m. with his family and girlfriend after Notre Dame’s double overtime loss to Connecticut, according to the official.

The group decided to leave after words were exchanged with others at the bar, the official said. As they were leaving, Clausen’s girlfriend realized she left her purse behind. Clausen went back to retrieve the purse and someone followed him outside and punched him, the official said. Clausen did not fight back and left, the official said.