Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1194048
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com JANUARY 2020 21 Only running back Tony Jones Jr. had more with 722. "His legs are probably underrated, in terms of running the ball and be- ing able to extend plays and make plays," quarterbacks coach Tom Rees said on stage after presenting Book with the award. "Even when a play is not supposed to work, he finds a way to make it work. There are times where the defense might have the right call or something might break down, but he finds a way to get through." Where Book may have regressed a little bit this season is, at times, re- lying too much on his legs, and he was significantly less accurate in his second year as Notre Dame's starting signal-caller. He set a Notre Dame record in 2018 with a 68.2 completion percentage, eclipsing the standard former Irish quarterback Jimmy Clausen set in 2009 with a 68.0 mark. This season, Book dropped nearly nine percent- age points, completing 59.3 percent of his passes. His yards per attempt fell by almost one yard as well. The good news is that Book played his best football of the season over the last four regular-season games, com- pleting 61.4 percent of his passes and throwing 16 touchdown passes. The biggest question on Fighting Irish fans' minds is whether this produc- tion is due to playing lesser competi- tion or if it was because Book found his mojo at the end of the season. Whatever the answer may be, one can be certain that Book is going to keep working to improve, whether he comes back in 2020 or takes bets on himself and declares for the NFL Draft. "No one on the team has worked harder," Rees said. "No one has put in more effort and time to get to where he's been. The success he's had is really a testament to how hard he's worked." DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: KHALID KAREEM Breakout fifth-year senior line- backer Asmar Bilal was also a can- didate to receive this award, but it's hard to argue that, throughout the season, any other player was more important to the Notre Dame defense than senior strongside end Khalid Kareem. This was the first Echoes award Kareem received during his four-year Notre Dame career. The senior captain was the lone Notre Dame defensive end to start all 12 games this season, despite dealing with nagging ankle injuries. He was fifth on the team in total tackles with 45, and led the Irish in sacks with 5.5 and tackles for a loss with 10. He also forced three fumbles this season, personally recovering one of them. ✦ "His competitive spirit has gotten him to where he is today. If he had a weakness, he worked on it, whatever it was. That's why he's such a great player." HEAD COACH BRIAN KELLY ON CLAYPOOL ✦ AWARD WINNERS ✦ IRISH AROUND THE BEND: Senior safety Jalen Elliott OFFENSIVE SCOUT TEAM PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Freshman quarterback Brendon Clark DEFENSIVE SCOUT TEAM PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Freshman defensive end Isaiah Foskey WOPU PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Senior running back Mick Assaf OFFENSIVE NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: Sophomore center Jarrett Patterson FATHER LANGE IRON CROSS: Fifth-year senior linebacker Asmar Bilal ROCKNE STUDENT-ATHLETE: Fifth-year senior wide receiver Chris Finke PIETROSANTE AWARD: Fifth-year senior defensive back Shaun Crawford MOOSE KRAUSE LINEMAN OF THE YEAR: Senior defensive end Julian Okwara OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE YEAR: Junior right tackle Robert Hainsey HUMBLE & HUNGRY AWARD: Senior right guard Trevor Ruhland SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Sophomore linebacker Bo Bauer IMPACT PLAYER ON DEFENSE: Senior safety Alohi Gilman IMPACT PLAYER ON OFFENSE: Junior tight end Cole Kmet BACK OF THE YEAR: Senior running back Tony Jones Jr. NEXT MAN IN: Senior defensive lineman Jamir Jones DEFENSIVE NEWCOMERS OF THE YEAR: Junior linebacker Drew White and freshman safety Kyle Hamilton DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Senior defensive end Khalid Kareem OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Senior quarterback Ian Book MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Senior wide receiver Chase Claypool Crouching from left to right: Tony Jones Jr., Khalid Kareem, Alohi Gilman and Chase Claypool. Standing from left to right: Julian Okwara, Jamir Jones, Jalen Elliott, Brendon Clark, Ian Book, Chris Finke, Shaun Crawford, Robert Hainsey, Trevor Ruhland, Cole Kmet, Jarrett Patterson, Mick Assaf and Asmar Bilal. PHOTO COURTESY FIGHTING IRISH MEDIA