Lou Holtz
Catch up with former Notre Dame Head Football Coach Lou Holtz as he tells us about important moments in his life, his principles to success, and how to find hope during difficult times.
Listen to the Episode
Friday, September 6, 2024 12:00 pm
“Significance is when you help other people be successful, and when you do that, that lasts many a lifetime.”
-Lou Holtz
Catch up with former Notre Dame Head Football Coach Lou Holtz as he tells us about important moments in his life, his principles to success, and how to find hope during difficult times.
This episode was originally published by FaithND on 2020. In September 2023, the Beth and Lou Holtz Family Grand Reading Room, the newest Hesburgh Library space to undergo a dramatic redesign, was opened for students and faculty thanks to a generous gift from former Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz in memory of his wife, Beth. Education and faith were of great importance to Beth Holtz — this space honors her devotion to learning and love of libraries. To learn more, click here.
To explore the entire library of Everyday Holiness podcast episodes and for more information about FaithND, please visit faith.nd.edu.
MoreMeet the Speaker: Lou Holtz
One of the most affable college head coaches of his generation, Lou Holtz won 249 games as with 100 of those victories earned at Notre Dame from 1986 through 1996. He led the Irish to the 1988 National Championship with a 12-0 record and victory over West Virginia in the Fiesta Bowl. The ‘88 title season began a 64-9-1 (.871) run for Holtz at Notre Dame that included a 23-game win streak, back-to-back 12-win seasons for the first time in school history and a program-record nine-consecutive bowl game appearances.
Holtz was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008 and instituted several traditions at Notre Dame that carry on to this very day. The famous “Play Like A Champion” sign in the football locker room, which Fighting Irish players strike on the way out to the field, was first hung up during the Holtz era. Holtz also removed names from the back of the football jerseys to emphasize the team dynamic, a tradition that is still followed today during all regular-season games.
Among the legendary players coached by Holtz at Notre Dame are 1987 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Brown and College Football Hall of Famers Raghib ‘Rocket’ Ismail, Michael Stonebreaker, Aaron Taylor and Chris Zorich.