Julian Love’s Late Interception Lifts Seahawks Past Patriots in Super Bowl Win
It took seven years for Julian Love to become a world champion.
On Sunday night, the former Notre Dame star reached the pinnacle of the sport, helping Seattle defeat New England 29-13 in the Super Bowl.
The Chicago native has always had a knack for making plays in the biggest moments and he delivered once again on the game’s grandest stage.
With just under nine minutes remaining, Seattle clung to a 19-7 lead as the Patriots began to build momentum. Love put an emphatic stop to it, stepping in front of a Drake Maye pass for an interception that effectively sealed the victory.
It was the type of moment every kid dreams about and one Love has been envisioning since childhood.
“I'd be kidding you if I didn't dream of that in the backyard when I was 8 or 9 years old,” laughed Love. “To see that ball in the air, it was right to me. The only thought in my mind is just catch it.”
Love was quick to deflect credit, pointing instead to Seattle’s front seven and his fellow defensive backs for putting him in position to make the play.
“They're killers,” Love stated. “They're some of the best players in this league. Allowing that to happen when they can be stout versus the run, having our four down be stout versus the run, it allows me to be free. It allows me and Kobe, our corners, to be free. It's talent.
“When we do send pressure, we're able to get home because he's already panicked. We had a good plan.”
Scheme aside, Love believes the chemistry within Seattle’s defense separates it from others around the league. The relationships are genuine, and he credits head coach Mike Macdonald for fostering an environment that allows players to be themselves.
“If you have eyes on us in the locker room at halftime on the sideline, we love each other,” explained Love. “We are constantly messing around. We're not too serious. We don't take ourselves too serious. When that whistle sounds, when we step across those white lines, then it's focused. That's the message of it.
“We're allowed to have fun. Mike allows us to have fun. The coaching staff, everybody's always laughing and having a good time. When there's work to be done, we go to work.”
The foundation of Seattle’s defense is its ability to generate pressure with four rushers. That approach allows Macdonald to play with two-high safeties and gives Love the freedom to roam and make plays.
“Everybody holds their own weight and has a chip on their shoulder to be successful,” Love said. “ It allows our front to take on double teams, play with four down, play in sub-packages as strong and as stout as we do. It frees us up so we can make plays and roam on secondary. You see our secondary all year making plays like that.
“I'm lucky to have made one today. It's pretty cool. I'm biased, but I love that we had the performance today on the big stage.”
As for what comes next, Love plans to return home to Chicago, where his family is set to grow by one next month.
“I'm going to go home, back to Chicago with my son,” said Love. “We have a second on the way in March and we're just going to enjoy just being together with our family. I'm really excited for that.”
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