3 bold predictions for No. 12 Notre Dame versus No. 24 Navy

Jeremiyah Love to Rush for 100 Yards

Scampering for scores hasn’t been an issue for Jeremiyah Love this season as he’s rushed for a touchdown in each of Notre Dame’s seven games this season. With that said, accumulating significant yardage on the ground has been rather elusive. Love has only reached the century mark once thus far this year — Love rushed for 109 yards against the Boilermakers in Week 3. 

Love, a former consensus Top 100 recruit, is a bonafide future NFL Draft talent. Standing at 6’ / 210 lbs, Love’s frame is ideal for the next level. Combine his physique with blazing speed — Love was a 100M Class 5A MSHS State Champion in 2021 whilst at Christian Brothers College — and Jeremiah has the capability to be a special talent that can not only earn the tough yardage when asked, but also break away from opponents when required. 

So, why has Love struggled to gain significant yardage game in and game out? Whelp, that’s mainly been down to workload.  Coach Marcus Freeman has a bevy of talented running backs at his disposal, and despite Love being the unquestioned starter, the amount of carries in which he gets per game is smaller than the norm — Love is averaging just 11 carries per contest compared to ND’s starting tailback from a year ago, Audric Estime, who accrued 17.5 rushes per game. 

Despite the fewer attempts, I’m predicting that the St. Louis, Missouri native — who is averaging an impressive 6.0 yards per carry for the season— will in fact reach triple digits on the ground against the Middies. Love’s lethal athleticism will be too much for Navy’s meek ground defense — the Midshipman rank 94th in rushing yards allowed per game, according to TeamRankings.