Last season was a promising one for the Notre Dame football team as the Fighting Irish made it all the way to the national title game. They came up a little bit short as they lost to Ohio State in that game, but the future looks bright. Despite the fact that Notre Dame has to break in a new quarterback this year, it is expected to be another good season. A big reason why expectations are high is the return of running back Jeremiyah Love.

Jeremiyah Love was one of best the RBs in college football last year, and now he is ready for another season with the Notre Dame football team. The entire college football world is expecting big things out of Love in 2025, and he has sky-high expectations for himself as well.

“Just to do better than I did last year, whatever that may be,” Love said, according to an article from On3. “Want to win some awards. Want to win the Heisman, want to win the Doak Walker. I just want to do better than I did last year and make a statement for myself. And cement myself in Notre Dame history, to come out as one of the best players in Notre Dame history. But I just want to go out there and win it. That’s a long time, 10 years ago [since a running back won the Heisman]. But maybe this year, I’ll have to make it plus one.”

If Love is going to pull off a huge season like that, he is going to have to improve his game in some areas. He realizes that he is one of the best backs in the game, but he also knows that there is always room to improve.

“Just get north,” Love said. “Because I like to try to make a lot of people miss. I like to try to do a lot of things, and sometimes that could hurt me yardage-wise. It’s time to just put your head down and get behind your shoulder pads and run straight. That’s what I got to do. But also, just be more of a smart football player. Know more about defenses.”

A lot of players try to look to the pros to get inspiration for their style of play, and that can help with improving their game. Love doesn't do that. He is his own unique player.

“I don’t shape my game after anybody,” he said. “I kind of just have my own style play. I’m an all-around back. When I’m running the ball, I run pretty high, and the reason for that is because I’m a little bit taller, a little bit more lengthy. And whenever it’s time to get physical, I can get low and get physical. I don’t know how I would compare myself to other running backs.”

Can Notre Dame live up to the hype in 2025?

Jeremiyah Love has a lot of hype coming into the 2025 season, and so does the Notre Dame football team in general. The Fighting Irish went to the national title last year, and now they want to get over the hump.

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“We’ve got to live up to those expectations,” Love said. “It makes me very confident knowing that the expectation for these guys is high, and it lets me know that they’re definitely going to grind their hardest and put in the work to live up to those expectations. Now I’m ready for the season, and ready to prove everybody right.”

Last year's finish didn't go to plan, but a lot of teams stumble before making it to the top. The Fighting Irish learned from that experience and are ready to improve.

“Obviously, we got to the national championship game, and it didn’t end how we wanted it,” Love continued. “But the fact that we made it there gave us a lot of insight on what we need to do in order to get there again and win it all next time. This season, we’re going to be hunted. People are coming at our necks, trying to make a statement. We welcome all of that. We’re just going to do what we have to do to make it to the national championship again this year and win it all. We know what it’s going to take to get there.”

If the Notre Dame football team is going to go on another run, it will need good QB play. CJ Carr and Kenny Minchey are competing for the starting job, and Love has total confidence in both of them.

“I care more about my room,” Jeremiyah Love said of the QB competition. “I know we got great coaches, and whoever ends up playing quarterback, I know that they’re going to be ready.”

Replacing a QB is never easy, but if the Notre Dame football team can find success at that position, it should be another good year.