(MCT) — CHICAGO — Word trickled out Sunday from Cierre Wood’s camp that the Notre Dame tailback had entered the final stages of deliberation about his future. Truth be told, just about everyone in his orbit long ago figured the process would end exactly as it did.

Wood is headed to the NFL draft, forgoing his final year of eligibility after amassing 2,447 yards, the seventh-best career total in Irish history. Though the school put out a release Monday afternoon, a text message from Wood’s mother, Valerie, to the Tribune hours earlier was a fitting official statement.