Lou Holtz, who coached Notre Dame to national title, dies at 89; had stop at UConn in 1960s
Lou Holtz, the College Football Hall of Fame coach who led Notre Dame to the 1988 national championship and won 249 games over 33 seasons at six schools, has died. He was 89.
Notre Dame announced on Wednesday that Holtz died in Orlando, Florida, surrounded by his family. Spokeswoman Katy Lonergan said a cause of death was not provided by the family.
Holtz became the first and so far only coach to lead six different teams to bowl games during a career in which he compiled a record of 249-132-7. He still ranks 10th all-time in career victories by a Football Bowl Subdivision coach, eighth all-time with 388 games coached. He has ties to Connecticut where he served as an assistant coach at UConn during the 1964 and ’65 seasons. Holtz’s son Skip would later become head coach of the Huskies from 1994-98.
At Notre Dame, he went 100-30-2 in 11 seasons producing both the third-highest win total in school history and the second-highest loss total.
Holtz won at every stop — except for a brief stint in the NFL.
He didn’t just win games, either. The diminutive coach captivated fans with his occasionally fiery sideline demeanor, his self-deprecating wit and folksy phrases all while demanding excellence, on and off the field, from his much larger players.
Holtz became such a popular personality that after coaching his last game, in 2004 with South Carolina, he parlayed that into a broadcasting career and motivational speaking.
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