Notre Dame’s late-season surge runs straight through Jeremiyah Love. Whenever the Irish needed stability, he provided it. Whenever they needed explosive plays, he supplied those, too. By the time the regular season closed, he had stacked up 1,372 yards and 18 touchdowns.
His speed, balance, and consistency have made him the focal point of a team that closed the year on a ten-game winning streak while beating every opponent in that stretch by double digits.
Love’s rise hasn’t come without small setbacks. He briefly exited the Stanford game with a minor rib issue, but the staff labeled it precautionary, and he returned to the sideline. No further concerns have been reported, and he remains fully available as Notre Dame prepares for its postseason push.
That momentum is part of why his recent social media post created such a stir. Love shared several photos from his time at Notre Dame and captioned it with a message that sounded more reflective than routine.
“It’s been a blessing ND [heart emoji],” he captioned the post.
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Fans immediately questioned whether he was hinting at an early jump to the NFL Draft. The timing, paired with his draft stock, pushed the speculation even further. Love is widely viewed as one of the top running back prospects in the 2026 class, and his production this season has only strengthened his case.
Nothing is official, but the possibility of him declaring after the postseason now feels very real.
Jeremiyah Love Got Honest About the Heisman Buzz
Love has also been candid about the national attention he has received. On The Echoes podcast, he acknowledged that the Heisman conversation matters to him, not just for personal recognition but for what it would signal about Notre Dame’s season.
He sees the honor as something larger than individual acclaim, something that would reflect the all-around effort of the offense, defense, and special teams that carried the Irish through their ten-game run.
“It would mean a lot, not only just for the program, but for myself. You know, I want to be in that position to have a chance to win the Heisman,” he said. “That’s just me speaking individually. Still, from a much bigger perspective, I feel like this team has done a lot of great things this year, both offensively and defensively and special teams-wise.” (From 32:32)
He also spoke about how representing Notre Dame on a stage like New York would highlight the program’s growth and the work the team has put in throughout the year. On3 recently placed him fourth in its Heisman rankings, giving him +2000 odds.
He sits behind Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia and Ohio State’s Julian Sayin, all quarterbacks with strong statistical cases of their own.
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