The end of the college football season brings a unique timeframe of decisions as players will opt out of their bowl games with the Transfer Portal opening at the start of January and the NFL Draft looming. When the regular season ended, few expected to see Notre Dame left out of the College Football Playoff ending the season early for some of the top players in the country.
Among the players affected by the Playoff committee's decision to leave Notre Dame out was star running back Jeremiyah Love. Given the shelf life of the position, it was apparent that Love wouldn't play in the Fighting Irish's bowl game, but the team made that decision easy on the players.
Jeremiyah Love officially declares for the NFL Draft
On Tuesday Night, Jeremiyah Love made the expected official as he declared he would be entering the 2026 NFL Draft.
Notre Dame RB Jeremiyah Love announced he is declaring for the NFL draft. pic.twitter.com/BIAWDZqCNX
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 17, 2025
Coming into the season, the expectation was that Jeremiyah Love would be the best running back in the country, and he lived up to the hype in every fashion. Love was one of the 4 Heisman Trophy finalists, rushing for 1,372 yards and 18 touchdowns on just 199 carries. The Notre Dame star finishes his career with an incredible 42 touchdowns across 3 seasons.
The expectation is that Jeremiyah Love will be a 1st round pick and the first running back to hear his name called in the 2026 NFL Draft. In our latest NFL Mock Draft, Love was the 12th overall pick, going to the Minnesota Vikings.
Notre Dame will have a massive hole to fill in the roster with Jeremiyah Love leaving. The good news for the Fighting Irish is that they have two more than capable running backs ready to step into the role in Jadarian Price and Aneyas Williams.