Marcus Freeman brought star power to meet his our Lady players this week. legendary trainer Lou Holtz entered – and brought a fun trick with him.
Holtz, who coached at Notre Dame from 1986 to 1996 and led the Fighting Irish to their last national title in 1988, brought a diary with him. He shared a message about staying positive and committed to the task at hand, no matter what people say.
As he spoke, he tore the paper into smaller and smaller pieces as he went. But when he was done sharing his message, he shook it off, sticking the paper back together as he went.
“If you really have faith and belief in each other, in what you do, people can tear you apart,” Holtz said. “They can say negative things. People may doubt you. But you can never doubt yourself.
“You always have to believe that you are part of something special. That no matter what, people can’t bring you down. No matter what happens, you have faith and belief…you will find a way.
This isn’t the first time Holtz has encountered members of the Notre Dame program in the past year. After Marcus Freeman took over as head coach of the Fighting Irish, he met Holtz and posted about it on social media.
“Coach Holtz holds a special place in @NDFootball history,” Freeman tweeted in February. “I’m grateful to have the chance to spend time with him!”
While at South Bend, Holtz totaled a 100-30-2 record and led the Fighting Irish to nine top-25 appearances in his 11 seasons with the team before his first retirement in 1996. He has ended up coming out of retirement in 1999. coaching at Caroline from the south until 2004, when he stepped away from the sidelines for good.
