Oct 4, 2025; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; NC State Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren with his team prepare to run out prior to the first half of the game against Campbell Fighting Camels at Carter-Finley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

NC State Preparing to Contain Notre Dame Star

Originally posted on NC State Wolfpack on SI
By Daniel Rios | Last updated Oct 11, 2025 11:00 AM ET

One of the first names NC State head coach Dave Doeren mentioned to his team in initial meetings leading up to the battle against No. 16 Notre Dame was no doubt one of the best players in the nation. One who could easily make this game a long one for the Wolfpack defense.

The player the NC State defense has to be aware of is No. 4 on every single down. Running back Jeremiyah Love is one of the best at his position in the country and for good reason. Standing at 6 feet, 214 pounds, Love brings explosiveness, quick cuts, the ability to make people miss in tight spaces and the versatility to catch passes as a receiver.

Love can take over a game, and Doeren knows this; it’s key to limit Love every time he gets a chance. But what’s the one aspect of Love’s game that stands out the most? What makes him one of the best at his position? He hasn’t gotten off to the start some had expected, having 444 rushing yards on the season, but a four-touchdown performance against Arkansas got him on people’s radars again.

Explosiveness is what stands out when you watch Love. When receiving the ball, he has an elite burst, making him hard to tackle in the backfield; here are a couple of examples of it in game action.

Film Examples

11:36 remaining in the first quarter, second-and-10

The burst Jeremiyah Love has on handoffs is crazy. A&M brings the field side blitz, leading to a free rusher, and Love's speed is just too much, creating a missed tackle pic.twitter.com/18avRd4X2o
— Daniel Rios (@daniel_rios72) October 11, 2025

Notre Dame is running a dive play with two lead blockers for Love on this play. Texas A&M brings a field-side safety blitz and he’ll come off the edge for free, getting a free lane on Love. Look at how fast his burst is when he gets the ball to make the safety miss in the backfield. Love makes what would’ve been a three-yard loss into a nine-yard gain for the Fighting Irish.

9:56 remaining in the first quarter, third-and-7

Again, the burst he gets from the ball is a weapon, and it just creates problems for defenses. The Razorbacks load up the right side of the line, leaving a favorable matchup for the left side of the Notre Dame offensive line.

Quarterback CJ Carr sees this and changes the play to a simple zone handoff to Love going left and, again, Love just gets a jolt when he gets the ball turning upfield for a chunk play entering the red zone for his offense.

It’s unlikely NC State can fully bottle up Love for the entirety of the day, but facing a back who can hit holes fast, players need to be sound in their gap responsibility – something Doeren has probably preached all week long to his defense. Now all that’s left is to execute on gameday.

This article first appeared on NC State Wolfpack on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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