Notre Dame Football: Can Ian Book get Irish back to College Football Playoff?
By Dakota Cox
Ian Book’s growth from his sophomore to junior years carried Notre Dame football to the College Football Playoff. Can he do it again in 2019?
Expectations were low for Notre Dame football in 2019. Many thought that the system of the College Football Playoff was against them, and their schedule was too hard to make it through unscathed. However, Ian Book helped the Fighting Irish overcome the odds become the first team outside of the Power Five conferences to make it to the playoff.
It is incredibly hard to make it to the CFP in two straight seasons, especially without a Conference Championship. If Notre Dame wants to do it again, they will need Ian Book to be even better than he was last season.
Last season, Book had 23 total touchdowns in 10 games of action. He had to overcome Brandon Wimbush at the start of the year, and he finally became the man of the Notre Dame offense. He also had Dexter Williams to rely on in the running game. Now that Williams is gone, Book will have to beat teams with his arm.
There will also be tons of pressure in big games this season. Notre Dame will have to travel to Athens to take on Georgia early in the season. Ideally, you turn to your senior quarterback to carry the team in games like that. If Notre Dame wants to win these games, Book will have to go from a game manager to a playmaker in the offense.
Book will also be without his trusted receiver Miles Boykin. Without his star running back and wide receiver, more pressure comes on the shoulders of Ian Book. I’m not going to say it is impossible for Notre Dame to make it back to the Playoff, but it will take a historic season from Book to get them there.
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This season is going to be a challenge for Ian Book and the Notre Dame football team. He will have to play the entire season, he’s without his star receiver and running back, and the schedule is incredibly rough. We’ll have to see if he is up for the challenge in 2019. He has the potential to get Notre Dame back to the Playoff, but I don’t see them catching lightning in a bottle twice.