Book And Notre Dame Staying Focused On The Process
Notre Dame quarterback Ian Book put together a quality body of work over the last four weeks, and the nation’s leader in completion percentage (75.2%) was able to get home to California over the bye week for some much-needed relaxation.
“It was fun and a good time for the bye week for everyone to rest up mentally and physically,” Book said. “We got to go home to see family and relax a little bit. We’re all back and ready.”
While the bye week gave the team a chance to get away from football, the focus has quickly adjusted to Navy as the Irish returned to campus on Sunday.
Book knows offensive possessions will be limited on Saturday and touchdowns will be a premium, but he doesn’t feel any extra pressure.
“We’ve been talking about it all week,” explained Book. “We have to be efficient because we only get the ball so many times. When we do get the ball, it’s important we put points on the board. It’s not something that should scare anyone, but we have to do what we’ve been trained to do throughout the week.
“We just have to play within the system and trust the coaching.”
For the Irish offense to be efficient, it starts with Book. The junior quarterback has been the model of efficiency in his four starts as he’s completed 103-of-137 passes for 1,151 yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions.
However, Book is looking for more from himself as Notre Dame starts a wild five-game stretch with the College Football Playoff on the line.
“I want to work on being in the film room and identifying the defense and coverage,” stated Book. “I want to know where to go with the ball and get the ball to our playmakers.”
Working with those playmakers is also something Book has focused on over the last few weeks, including improving the deep ball.
“I’m working on chemistry with the guys,” Book explained. “Knowing where their landmark is and where they want to go. I’ve been on and off some games, but it will come.”
Notre Dame’s road to the playoffs starts on Saturday and seeing previous No. 3 Ohio State fall on the road at Purdue is very fresh in the minds of Book and his teammates.
“We need to take it week by week,” said Book. “We have to stick with our process that we’ve been following since the day after the Citrus Bowl. I watched that game, and that’s college football. It shows you it can happen every week and we know it. If we stick to our process, practice like we’ve been practicing and preparing for our opponents, we’re confident we will do fine.
“It’s hard. If it was easy, I think a lot of teams would go undefeated. It’s a long season. You have to stay focused, and that’s the hardest part about it. The whole team has to stay focused on the same goal.”