Lou Holtz dies in Florida. Notre Dame coach was Miami's bitter rival
· Yahoo Sports
One of the biggest characters in one of the fiercest rivalries in the Miami Hurricanes' ascension into a college football dynasty has died. Lou Holtz, who coached the Notre Dame football team in the infamous "Catholics vs. Convicts" game, passed away at 89 years old, his family announced Wednesday, March 4.
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Holtz was a College Football Hall of Fame coach who spent parts of five decades in the sport, getting his start at William & Mary in 1969 before moving on to North Carolina State, Arkansas, Notre Dame and South Carolina. He was most known for his time leading the Fighting Irish, whom he led to an undefeated record and the national championship in 1988. It's the team's most recent title.
Holtz died surrounded by family in Orlando, according to a post on his social media account. He had gone into hospice care in January.
“Notre Dame mourns the loss of Lou Holtz, a legendary football coach, a beloved member of the Notre Dame family and devoted husband, father and grandfather,” Notre Dame President Rev. Robert A. Dowd said in a news release.
Lou Holtz coached in 'Catholics vs Convicts' game
Holtz is infamous in South Florida for leading Notre Dame's 1988 team that ended Miami's 36-game regular-season winning streak and interrupting what could have been a three-year run of national championships. His Irish hosted Jimmy Johnson and the No. 1 Hurricanes on Oct. 15, 1988, a year after getting flattened 24-0 in the Orange Bowl.
In the lead-up to the game, Notre Dame students were billing the showdown as "Catholics vs. Convicts," poking fun at Miami players' recent arrest records. Shirts with the slogan spread across campus, leading to a fierce atmosphere at Notre Dame Stadium on gameday, with players fighting in the tunnel during pregame warmups.
The Irish led late in the game when Miami scored a touchdown to make it 31-30. Rather than taking the extra point and settling for a tie, the Hurricanes went for two points and the win, but Steve Walsh's pass was knocked down in the end zone, giving the Irish their biggest win in years.
Notre Dame would beat West Virginia 34-21 in the Fiesta Bowl to cap its 11th national championship in its history, while Miami finished No. 2 at 11-1. The rivalry would continue for two more years — a 27-10 Miami win in 1989 and a 29-20 Notre Dame win in 1990 — before taking a decade-long hiatus.
Miami vs Notre Dame rivalry lives on
The bitterness of the Miami-Notre Dame rivalry lingers to this day. The Hurricanes opened the 2025 college football season in a raucous Hard Rock Stadium in South Florida, notching an upset win over Notre Dame 27-24. Miami stunned the Irish again when it received the final at-large spot in the College Football Playoff, something Notre Dame had been projected to receive throughout the season.
The two old rivals have lost the past two CFP national championship games.
Contributing: A.J. Perez, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Lou Holtz dies, coached in Miami-Notre Dame Catholics vs Convicts game