Oak Ridge’s Ian Book picked by New Orleans Saints in 4th round of NFL Draft
Ian Book went into NFL Draft weekend expecting anything.
The Notre Dame quarterback by way of Oak Ridge High School hoped to get a draft call but also said he’d make an NFL roster if he wasn’t drafted.
On Saturday afternoon, he sat bolt upright in his seat in the home of his parents El Dorado Hills home, taking the draft call, surrounded by family. Book went in the fourth round, the 133rd overall pick, to a franchise that has a quarterback vacancy after the retirement of record-setting Drew Brees, who raved about Book leading up to the draft, including, “his teammates would run through a wall for him.”
“My heart is still pounding,” Book said on a Zoom media call shortly after his selection. “It’s such a surreal moment, something I dreamed of for such a long time. To get this call with my family and everybody here in town, it’s everything I’ve wanted for such a long time.”
Like the 6-foot Brees, the similarly shaped Book will continue to address the only question mark on his otherwise glossy resume: size. No one doubts his ability to lead a team, or his skills and will to achieve, dating back to his prep days, or how he emerged as the winningest quarterback in Notre Dame history, winning 30 of 34 starts.
It’s height.
“That’s just been the story my whole entire life,” Book said. “I’ve always had a chip on my shoulder. I’m not getting any taller, and Drew Brees has been able to (succeed in the NFL at their height). There’s many other quarterbacks you can go down the list that have been able to do it.”
Book added, “We’re different players, but we’re similar in stature. And (Brees) proved to everybody down there and in the world that he could do it, and I want to do the same thing. I just feel like I fit in that system well. Those are big shoes to fill, there’s no doubt about it, but that’s an exciting challenge for me.”
At Notre Dame, Book passed for nearly 9,000 yards and connected on 72 touchdowns as a three-year starter, two-time team captain and the program’s winningest quarterback. He also rushed for 1,517 yards over his career with 17 scores.
“I’ll do anything to help the team, whatever that is,” Book said. “That’s why they picked me, to be better, and I’ll do whatever they want me to do. I’m going to go in there and work hard.”