How Should Notre Dame Use Heisman Hopeful Jeremiyah Love vs Stanford?

Notre Dame's game at Stanford is full of national intrigue

On the surface, Notre Dame vs a four-win Stanford team with the game not starting until 10:30 ET doesn't look on the surface like the most interesting affair, but looks can be deceiving. Notre Dame will enter this contest with everything in the world on the line vs the Cardinal.

The Irish are in a hotly contested CFP battle for the few remaining at-large bids and need not just a win, but an impressive win over Stanford to be in position to make the field and hold off the likes of Miami and other contenders for a coveted spot in the crowded field.

Aside from this overall goal, Jeremiyah Love is in a Heisman push with just one game left. Most of the country may be asleep by the time this game ends, but Notre Dame nation will be wide awake for every moment of this contest!

LOVE 4️⃣ HEISMAN 💚#GoIrish🫶 | @JeremiyahLove pic.twitter.com/EW8DdWfyE3
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) November 23, 2025

How will Notre Dame use Jeremiyah Love vs Stanford?

Jeremiyah Love needs just 132 yards rushing to become Notre Dame's all-time leading rusher, and he has one game left to accomplish this goal. This makes me wonder how Mike Denbrock and Marcus Freeman will game plan vs Stanford.

Do the Irish maintain their normal running back rotation and game plan? Or is there a concerted effort to force the ball to Love to give him every opportunity to break this record and dare Heisman voters not to vote for the player who just broke Notre Dame's single-season rushing record?

With Notre Dame entering the game as a 32.5-point favorite in this contest, another consideration emerges. If the Irish are winning comfortably and Love has not yet eclipsed the rushing record, does he remain in the game, or do the Irish pull him to not risk injury for what will likely be a CFP run?

Notre Dame needs to reach for history

Notre Dame is a place that has been built on rewriting the history books. From all of the national titles to seven Heisman trophies, the Irish's legacy has been based on historic teams, performances, players, and coaches.

With this in mind, it feels to me like Notre Dame needs to responsibly try to have Love break this record. Perhaps he gets five more carries in the first half than normal. Maybe there are more plays drawn up to get him in open space than you'd usually see against a four-win team to end the season.

In an ideal world, Jeremiyah Love has a similar game to the one he just had against Syracuse in which he maximizes output, 171 yards and 3 touchdowns, on just eight carries. This would be the best of both worlds. It would allow Love to break the rushing record while at the same time limiting the odds of him getting injured in a playoff hunt.

Notre Dame lore was built on the shoulders of players like Jeremiyah Love; it's only appropriate that he reaches this record and gets his Heisman due in New York.