With Senior Bowl week ending, we’ll dive head-first into mock draft season. Players must be removed from high school for three years before being eligible for the NFL draft, so we focus primarily on juniors and seniors.
But with the ever-changing landscape of college football, could it be possible to see this rule change soon? FOX Sports NFL draft analyst Rob Rang wondered about this and had a unique twist on his mock draft.
He included players in their first and second years in his 2025 mock, leading to Arch Manning getting drafted first overall to the Tennessee Titans. This provided the Minnesota Vikings with an intriguing selection at pick No. 24.
Rang had the Vikings select Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love. The sophomore running back had a spectacular 2024 season, rushing for 1,125 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 6.9 yards per carry. And with Aaron Jones set for free agency (and being 30 when the 2025 season begins), Love would make sense.
Aaron Jones performed well for the Vikings in 2024, but I’ll be surprised if they don’t take advantage of this year’s running back class. Love, just a sophomore, helped power Notre Dame’s run to the national title game, showing off a slashing style that would match perfectly with the Vikings’ playmakers at receiver. And, at least in this mock draft, selecting a second consecutive Golden Domer might steal some thunder from the rival Packers (he had them select Notre Dame CB Benjamin Morrison at pick No. 23).
Running back would be tempting at pick No. 24 if the Vikings could address their interior offensive and defensive lines in free agency. Love won’t be available this year, but the 2025 running back class is strong and deep. Even if selecting the Notre Dame back isn’t possible this year, the thought process could be used to select a Day 1 starter sometime in this draft.
