Jan. 04--KeiVarae Russell was gone, only to return again to South Bend, Ind.
Now, he said Monday, he's leaving behind his Notre Dame football uniform for good.
"I'm leaving," Russell tweeted after thanking the program and coach Brian Kelly, "but grateful for my time at @NotreDame."
Three days after promising a swarm of media after the Fiesta Bowl it wouldn't miss his announcement, Russell told Sports Illustrated's Pete Thamel on Monday he will not wait around to hear whether the NCAA will grant him another year of eligibility but instead he will enter the NFL draft.
Russell is the third Notre Dame player in three days to announce he was leaving for the chance to play in the NFL, joining receiver Will Fuller and running back C.J. Prosise. Offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley announced long ago he would not return next season.
Russell, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound cornerback, missed the 2014 season, one of five football players suspended by the university for academic dishonesty. He returned this season and recorded two interceptions and 60 tackles before fracturing his right tibia Nov. 21 against Boston College. He was expected to miss six to eight weeks.
Russell told Thamel he "will be healed in the next few days," but will skip the workouts at the NFL Combine in February.
Russell called himself a "wolverine," a reference to his ability to quickly heal, after the Irish's 44-28 loss to Ohio State on New Year's Day.
He said he plans to finish his degree at Notre Dame.
In order for Russell to have played for the Irish next year, the NCAA would have had to have granted him an appeal.
pskrbina@tribpub.com
