Seahawks Julian Love and Rylie Mills clinch Super Bowl glory, capping their journey from Notre Dame standouts to championship winners.
The 2026 football season has officially come to a close, and thousands of fans across the country are going to have to wait several months to watch their favorite teams take the field. Last night, the Seattle Seahawks defeated the New England Patriots 29-13 in Super Bowl 60 in San Francisco. Yesterday's matchup also featured two former Notre Dame standouts on defense, and their nights ended, walking off the field with a pair of Super Bowl Rings.
Seahawks safety Julian Love and defensive tackle Rylie Mills both had standout performances last night and played a role in Seattle bringing home their first championship since the 2014 season. Love picked off Patriots quarterback Drake Maye midway through the 4th quarter helping seal the Seahawks victory. Mills earned his first career NFL sack last night in the second quarter; not a bad way to kick off your NFL career.
Love came to South Bend during the 2016 recruiting cycle and started playing, almost immediately, for the Fighting Irish defense. He broke out in 2017 and played a major role in Notre Dame turning around their woeful season from a year prior. Love totaled 64 tackles, 18 passes defended, two interceptions and two defensive touchdowns. The following year, he returned in 2018 and played an integral role in the Irish going 12-0 in the regular season and playing Clemson in the College Football Playoffs.
The 5-11, 195-pound corner turned safety in the NFL finished his collegiate career with 172 total tackles, 34 passes defended, one forced fumble, five interceptions and two defensive touchdowns that both came in 2017. He was named a Consensus All-American in 2018 and was drafted in the 4th round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the New York Giants where he transitioned to safety. Love was also a candidate for the 2025 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award this season.
Mills came to South Bend during the 2019 recruiting cycle and played up until 2024. The 6-5, 290-pound defensive tackle played the majority of his career under head coach Marcus Freeman and was their best defensive lineman on their 2024 team that made a run at the national title. The Illinois native wasn't able to finish the 2024 playoff run due to a knee injury he suffered against Indiana in the first round of the playoffs. Thankfully, he still got his opportunity last night and didn't disappoint.
The former Notre Dame defensive tackle ended his collegiate career with 131 total tackles, 17.0 sacks and 25.0 tackles for a loss. Mills was named a Second Team All-American by Sporting News and ESPN after his standout out season in 2024. He was also named a 2024 team captain and joined an elite group of players that have come and gone over the course of Notre Dame's program history to earn that honor.
Love was not named a captain while at Notre Dame, but was named a captain in the NFL for both the New York Giants and the Seattle Seahawks. Both Love and Mills also join a short list of iconic Notre Dame alum who have left South Bend and gone on to win Super Bowls. That list includes players like Joe Montana, Rocky Bleier, Justin Tuck, Ricky Watters, Paul Hornung, Joe Theismann, Golden Tate, Drue Tranquill, Jerome Bettis and Bryant Young.
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