Lou Holtz, former Notre Dame football coach and Jets coach, dies at age 89
Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz is carried off the field after his team defeated West Virginia in the Fiesta Bowl to win the national championship on Jan. 2, 1989. Credit: AP
Legendary college football coach Lou Holtz, who led Notre Dame to a national championship and once coached the Jets, died on Wednesday. He was 89.
Holtz entered into hospice care in his Orlando, Florida home in late January. He was surrounded by his family at the time of his death.
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Lou Holtz,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said in a statement. “On behalf of the Notre Dame football program, we send out love to Lou’s family and friends and former players, wishing you all comfort and peace during this difficult time.
A towering figure in college football, Holtz spent more than 50 years as a coach and later a television analyst.
Holtz is best known for leading the Notre Dame Fighting Irish from 1986-96. Notre Dame went 100-30-2 under Holtz. The Irish enjoyed a 12-0 season in 1988 and beat West Virginia in the Fiesta Bowl to capture the national championship.
“Winning the national championship was never in my thoughts,” Holtz said at the time. “I have been asked the question did I ever dream about winning the national championship. Yeah, you dream about it, but I never really thought that it would happen to me. I never thought I would coach a national championship team.”
Born Jan. 6, 1937 in Follansbee, West Virginia, Holtz grew up in East Liverpool, Ohio and played linebacker for Kent State.
Holtz began his coaching journey in 1960 as a graduate assistant at Iowa. He also was an assistant coach at William & Mary, Connecticut, South Carolina and Alabama.
William & Mary gave Holtz his first head coaching job in 1969. He also guided North Carolina State, Arkansas, Minnesota and South Carolina in his 33 seasons as a college head coach. Holtz’s teams went 249-132-7, including 12-8-1 in bowl games.
He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.
The Holtz family released a statement that in part read that their patriarch “is remembered for his enduring values of faith, family, service and an unwavering belief in the potential of others. His influence extended far beyond the football field through the Holtz Charitable Foundation and the many players, colleagues and communities shaped by his leadership.”
Holtz tried coaching in the NFL, but he lasted less than one season.
The Jets hired Holtz to be their head coach in 1976 in Joe Namath’s last year with the team. Holtz resigned on Dec. 9, 1976 with one game remaining in the season. The Jets were 3-10 at the time.
“God did not put Lou Holtz on this earth to coach in the pros,” Holtz was quoted as saying.
After Holtz left Notre Dame following the 1996 season, he worked for two years as a college football analyst for CBS Sports. Holtz returned to coaching in 1999 with South Carolina, where he went 33-37 in six seasons.
Holtz retired from coaching for good in 2004. He went back to television, serving as a college football analyst for ESPN from 2005-2015.
Holtz is survived by his children, Luanne, Skip, Kevin and Liz, nine grandchildren and two great grandchildren. Holtz’s wife Beth died in 2020.
“Lou’s impact at Notre Dame has gone well beyond the football field,” Freeman said. “He and his wife Beth are respected across campus for their generation hearts and commitment to carrying out Notre Dame’s mission of being a force for good.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
