The last NCAAF season for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish certainly ended on a bittersweet note, though the journey to the National Championship game was highly successful. Freeman’s offense had one of its big revelations in Jeremiyah Love, who revealed that he feels deeply influenced in his game by Philadelphia Eagles star Saquon Barkley.
Barkley is currently one of the best at his position in the NFL, and he’s also known for adopting a signature move in his game: the backwards hurdle. A big part of what motivates Love to keep perfecting his game in College Football comes from this.
In a recent conversation with NFL Network, the talented running back on Marcus Freeman’s offense spoke out about the influence Barkley has had on his game and how he taught him to feel free to play the position: “I’m kind of a daredevil type of player.”
“I’m willing to go out there and do anything. And seeing Saquon do the backwards hurdle, that really inspired me to go out on the field and try to play as free as I can. Shoot, that’s kind of where I got my motivation to continue the hurdling. Seeing him do it on the next level … that’s probably one of the greatest plays in football history I’ve ever seen. Seeing him do that, he plays my position … play as free as he does just gives me more motivation to be myself on the field.
Jeremiyah Love #4 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish speaks to the media during the Notre Dame Fighting Irish media day at the Georgia World Congress Center prior to the 2025 CFP National Championship between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Notre Dame Fighting Irish on January 18, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia.
“I most definitely at some point down the road will attempt (to do) a backwards hurdle, if the situation is right. But until then I’m going to stick to jumping over people the regular way,” he finally concluded.
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Love’s numbers from last season
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish were one step away from becoming champions in the NCAAF, but unfortunately for them, the Ohio State Buckeyes were able to showcase their supremacy and ended up winning the championship.
Despite this, Jeremiyah Love was a pleasant surprise for Marcus Freeman’s offense, finishing the year with standout numbers. As a sophomore, he ran for 1,125 yards, 17 touchdowns, 6.9 yards per carry, and had 28 catches for 237 yards and two touchdowns.
