Mike McGlinchey Believes In Book
Notre Dame will head on the road for the third time this fall, but the focus has been on starting quarterback Brandon Wimbush and the boot/crutches he was seen in on Monday.
It’s unknown if Wimbush will be able to play on Saturday at North Carolina, but Irish captain Mike McGlinchey has faith in redshirt freshman Ian Book.
“He’s a good kid, great player and slings the ball all over the field,” McGlinchey said of Book. “He takes a lot of pride in knowing his responsibilities and has worked very hard with coach Tommy Rees, Coach (Chip) Long and Coach (Brian) Kelly to be able to step up when his time comes.
“If it is the case Ian is the starter on Saturday, we aren't going to have problems. He’s going to lead us in the same ways Brandon would. He’s going to do a great job.”
Book has demonstrated the ability to throw the ball around in limited action, including a 48-yard bomb to Chris Finke last weekend. However, McGlinchey knows the California native also has some intangibles that make up a successful quarterback.
“He’s a gamer,” stated McGlinchey. “It’s just one of those things that practice is hard, you get every look in the book you can have against a specific way you’re going to attack. Rarely is the game harder than in practice.
“When the bright lights are on, and 80,000 people are in the stands, it makes it pretty exciting to be able to fly around, sling the ball and do he’s capable of doing.
“He’s here for a reason. He’s at the University of Notre Dame to play quarterback. He’s going to do a great job for us if his name is called.”
If Book is the starter on Saturday, McGlinchey doesn’t feel the offensive line will need to change much, if at all. The Irish are a power run team, and the goal is to block for whoever has the ball, so whether it’s Book, Wimbush or Josh Adams, the goal is the same.
“We try to do that each and every day,” McGlinchey said when asked if the roles changes for the offensive line. “No matter who is carrying the ball, we’re trying to make the hole as big as possible to give them as much room to run as we can.”
The road trip to Chapel Hill isn’t much of a concern for the All-American, as Notre Dame came up with big wins at Boston College and Michigan State last month.
“It’s the same thing we have been doing,” explained McGlinchey. “We need to worry about our job and what we can control. There is flying, a different hotel and possible crowd noise is a factor, but other than that, it’s just college football. You have to do your job to the best of your ability play as hard as you can.”
The chance to get another win on the road is important, but it would also move the Irish to a 5-1 record heading into the much-needed bye week. McGlinchey knows leaving Chapel Hill with a win could set up a lot of meaningful games down the stretch and North Carolina is the only focus right now.
“It would be huge for us,” McGlinchey said. “When you get a week off, it’s big to have momentum. We’re not worried about the bye week right now. We’re worried about North Carolina.”