On March 4, 2026 the Fighting Irish faithful and community lost legendary head coach Lou Holtz. Holtz was a prolific coach on and off the field for his former players. He’s the last coach to have won a national title at Notre Dame and went 100-30-2 during his time in South Bend. He had one of the highest win percentages in program history and had a proven track record of turning around every program he coached with including Arkansas, Minnesota, Notre Dame and South Carolina.
His impact on the field will always be remembered, but it’s not as impactful as his impact off the field in the lives of his former players and a current member of the Notre Dame coaching staff. Earlier this week, current head coach Marcus Freeman spoke with JD Pickell from On3 and talked about Coach Holtz and the impact he had on him.
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“Coach Holtz was such an amazing individual,” Freeman explained. “Unfortunately, I didn’t get the chance to play for him or coach for him, but his influence on me has been so impactful. I ultimately say leaders are people that have influence and he influenced me in so many different ways. The greatest evaluation of a leader is is how you lead during tough times.”
Freeman has certainly seen his fair share of tough times at Notre Dame. In his first season, they lost back to back games to start the season with one of those losses coming to Marshall at home. Later that season, they lost to a Stanford team that hadn’t beat a P4 opponent since 2019.
In 2023, after a 4-0 start, they lost to Ohio State at home in heart breaking fashion and proceeded to drop two more devastating losses to Louisville and Clemson. In 2024, they kicked off their campaign with a massive win on the road against Texas A&M, but lost the following week to Northern Illinois at home. Through the pain, there was one person who Freeman heard from consistently, Coach Holtz.
“He reached out every time we lost,” Freeman said. “He always had the right words to say, no matter what it was. I mean, there’s a whole bunch of different examples, but he always had the right words to say because he sat in this chair. He understands the pressure and the emotions that I’ve been through, especially after a loss, being the head coach at Notre Dame.”
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Holtz’s impact went beyond the football field and the accolades he racked up along the way. You’re always remembered by who you were as a person, not by the amount of wins you accumulated or the number of national titles won. Lou Holtz was a person who genuinely cared about his players, the people around him and the University of Notre Dame.
“I was telling my wife last night about one of the last text messages Coach Holtz sent me,” Freeman said. “He said that he is always rooting for me and is always praying for the Notre Dame football team and the university. It’s just a reminder of who he is as a person and he’ll be missed.”
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