Jeremiyah Love Says Notre Dame Wants OSU in CFP Title Game: 'I Want to Play The Best'

While most players will be diplomatic about who they would prefer to play in a championship game, Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love said in no uncertain terms who he would prefer to see advance in the College Football Playoff semifinal between Ohio State and Texas.

After the Fighting Irish's dramatic 27-24 win over Penn State on Thursday, Love told Andy Staples of On3.com "I want to play the best and win" and he believes Ohio State is better than Texas.

Few people would argue that the Buckeyes aren't playing the best football in the country right now. They have marched through the first two rounds of the playoffs by outscoring their opponents 83-38, including a dominant 41-21 victory over No. 1 seed Oregon in the Rose Bowl.

Ohio State's offense has racked up 973 yards in two playoff games. Will Howard, who had one 300-yard game in the regular season, has thrown for more than 300 yards in wins over Tennessee and Oregon.

Love's hope to play Ohio State is also rooted in a desire for revenge because he cited the regular-season meeting in South Bend between these two programs last year. The Buckeyes won that game 17-14 on Deamonte Trayanum's one-yard touchdown run with one second remaining.

Even though many key players for both teams this season didn't play in the 2023 contest, Love had a close-up view of the devastating loss for Notre Dame. He had 57 yards on eight carries in that game.

If you believe in bulletin board material, Love gave plenty of it to Texas if the Longhorns win on Friday. There's certainly an argument that Ohio State and Texas were the two best teams in the final four.

Ohio State is the lowest-seeded team among the four semifinalists at No. 8, but it's put together the most impressive run of anyone in the field so far.

The Buckeyes and Longhorns will square off at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday. The winner will advance to play Love and the Fighting Irish in the College Football Playoff Championship Game on Jan. 20.