El Dorado Hills’ Ian Book leads Notre Dame upset, but will coronavirus stall season?

The best of college football played out Saturday night in the chill of Indiana.

But the action in South Bend spilled into the wee hours of Sunday, and it may leave a stain on the season. No more stains. No more stop and starts. We’ve all had enough.

Saturday featured a double-overtime show between Notre Dame and Clemson, a reprieve from politics and a temporary disconnect from the coronavirus pandemic. The contest was followed by the cringe-worthy scene typical of the chaos of COVID-19, and the lingering toll may define the season.

Notre Dame quarterback Ian Book of El Dorado Hills engineered the tying touchdown drive to force overtime and then remained sharp as the Irish ejected Clemson from the No. 1 spot, 47-40, before the celebration morphed into a troubling scene.

Students flooded the field. Some sought out their Irish heroes such as Book, the Oak Ridge High School graduate who embraces his role of program leader. Some of the giddy dressed in nun outfits, others in pajamas, or jerseys. Hugs for everyone. High-fives for you, chest bumps for them. The announced crowd was 11,011, but it looked larger.

Some wore masks. Some had theirs smudged away in the crunch of humanity in the mosh pit. The biggest game of an odd college football season suddenly became a debate of fan impulse, program responsibility and the likely fallout if this becomes a COVID-19 superspreader moment.

The university addressed the scene in a letter sent to students Sunday.

“As exciting as last night’s victory against Clemson was, it was very disappointing to see evidence of widespread disregard of our health protocols at many gatherings over the weekend,” university president Rev. John Jenkins told students in a news release. The administration is performing contact tracing and testing to determine if anybody was sickened amid the scene Saturday night.

Did anyone notice Touchdown Jesus covering his face in despair?

“It was crazy,” is how Notre Dame receiver Avery Davis explained it to media afterward.

Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly anticipated this scene. He worked tirelessly to implore players to do their part in holding off the virus, to not pack in after practices with people outside their inner Irish circle. Book talked to me about this before the season in an interview, pointing out that everyone wants fans at games, and that would include social distancing. From the start of the season, Book has been in a form of isolation after practices because he is deemed that important in terms of the virus.

Clemson’s star quarterback Trevor Lawrence didn’t play Saturday because he tested positive for the coronavirus, though he was on the sideline with a mask.

Notre Dame ceased on-campus learning early in the academic year after a spike in tests, tied to students meeting in large gatherings. That’s what people this age do. They socialize. They pack in. On Saturday, Notre Dame toppled its first No. 1 team in South Bend since 1993, and students rejoiced.

When Clemson’s 36-game regular-season winning streak, and 50 in a row on Saturdays, came to an end, fans became magnets to anyone wearing gold helmets. So what to do? Not allow fans? I applaud Notre Dame for allowing students and family of players into Notre Dame Stadium. Students had to test for the virus days before the game, or no entry. Reduced crowds work, until that crowd becomes a sea of ants at a picnic.

“When they stormed the field, you got a sense of a special moment at Notre Dame,” Kelly said. “I know our players did as well. I told our team — and, again, I’m doing a lot of things I probably shouldn’t be doing — but I told our team at our walk-through (Saturday), ‘Listen, I want you to know when we win this thing, the fans are going to storm the field, and with COVID being as it is, we have to get off the field and get to the tunnel.”

The coach added, “Now I beat them all to the tunnel, so that didn’t go over so good. But they reminded me that I did tell them that, so my skills of prognostication were pretty good (Saturday).”

Book brilliance

Book was marvelous in his signature football night. The senior passed for 310 yards, threw the tying touchdown to lead to overtime, and had the confidence of Kelly the entire way.

Said Book, “He came up to me and said, ‘You’re going to win this game. This is your game to win. You deserve it, and it’s time.’ I 100 percent believed him. I believed we were going to win this game. To have his confidence and to have him behind me like that means a lot.”

Book in layers: He accepted Notre Dame’s scholarship offer out of Oak Ridge to sample the experience with one of sport’s storied programs. Then he became the Irish starting quarterback, and then he lived up to the moment on Saturday.

He is now 27-3 as Notre Dame’s starting quarterback. The Irish are now ranked second. At 7-0, they aim to finish it out. There may even be a rematch with Clemson.

“It was so fun,” Book said. “A night I’ll never forget. No matter how old I am, I know I’ll remember this game forever.”