FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) – Former Arkansas head football coach Lou Holtz has passed away. According to Notre Dame Athletics. Holtz was 89 years old.
Notre Dame announced that Holtz died on Wednesday in Orlando, Florida, surrounded by his family. The cause of death was not given.
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Holtz entered hospice care on January 29, According to several reports.
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MIAMI, FLORIDA – JANUARY 02: Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Lou Holtz walks on the sideline as his team takes on the Oklahoma Sooners in the 1978 Orange Bowl on January 2, 1978 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Rich Clarkson/NCAA Photo via Getty Images)
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FILE – In this Jan. 2, 1978 file photo, Arkansas coach Lou Holtz is carried by his players after defeating Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. One constant in college football over the past 80 years has been the AP Poll. It has helped connect the past to the present and provided perspective. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin, File)
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Arkansas coach Lou Holtz rode the victory on the shoulders of Earl Buckingham (73) and Milton Fields (49) as his Razorbacks won the Bluebonnet Bowl game over Florida by a score of 28–24 in Houston on December 31, 1982. (AP Photo)
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Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz carrying the National College Champion trophy, which was awarded to Notre Dame, during a press conference in Tempe, Arizona, on January 3, 1989. Lou Holtz and his Fighting Irish defeated West Virginia 34–21 in the Fiesta Bowl. (AP Photo/Rob Schumacher)
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Arkansas head football coach Houston Nutt, right, greets South Carolina head coach Lou Holtz before the start of their game on Saturday, October 16, 1999 at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Ark. Holtz was the head coach of Arkansas before going to Minnesota, Notre Dame and South Carolina. (AP Photo/Spencer Tyree)
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Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz watches his team’s players work out before Japan’s game against the U.S. national football team at the Notre Dame Japan Bowl on Saturday, July 25, 2009 in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Junji Kurokawa)
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KNWA’s Eli Lynch with Lou Holtz in September 2025
Was a College Football Hall of Famer head coach at arkansas from 1977 to 1983 and led the program to five bowl games during his six-season tenure, including an Orange Bowl berth in 1977. He went 60–21–6 during his time in Fayetteville.
He was the head coach at Notre Dame from 1986 to 1996 and led the school to a national championship in 1988 with a 12–0 season and a victory in the Fiesta Bowl.
During his coaching career, Holtz has spent time with the New York Jets, College of William & Mary, North Carolina State University, University of Minnesota, and University of South Carolina.
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Holtz became the first and so far the only coach to lead six different teams to bowl games during his career, compiling a record of 249–132–7. He still ranks 10th in career wins as a Football Bowl Subdivision coach, ranking eighth all-time with 388 games coached.
He also worked in television as an analyst with CBS Sports and ESPN.
Holtz was recently in Fayetteville Honorary Captain of the Razorbacks For their first meeting against Notre Dame. A few days before the game, Holtz Talked to KNWA’s Eli Lynch About his time as Head Hog and what he loved about Northwest Arkansas.
The Holtz family posted the following on Holtz’s X page:
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Louis Leo “Lou” Holtz, the legendary college football coach, Hall of Famer, bestselling author and one of America’s most influential motivational voices, has died surrounded by family in Orlando, Florida, at the age of 89. Born on January 6, 1937, in Follansbee, West Virginia, Holtz rose from humble beginnings to become one of the most respected figures in college athletics. In a remarkable career spanning five decades, he Led college programs at William & Mary, Arkansas, Notre Dame and South Carolina. He is remembered for his enduring values of faith, devotion and service to others and the 1988 National Championship with the Fighting Irish. Beyond the football field, through the many players, associates and communities shaped by his leadership, he is survived by four children, nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, including Christian burial arrangements at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame, to be announced as soon as details are finalized.
The Razorbacks head men’s basketball coach released the following statement on Twitter regarding Holtz’s passing.
“Just heard the news about Coach Holtz. When I first met him he was coaching at South Carolina and I was in town on a recruiting trip, I spent an hour with him in his office talking about leadership, management, recruiting. He was a great recruiter, incredibly organized and extremely gracious with his time that day. It was incredible. I also coached in a league with his son Skip. Fantastic coach and one of the best people It was a pleasure to meet him again last year. My condolences to the family. May his soul rest in peace.”
Holtz celebrated his 89th birthday in January.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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