Former South Carolina QB Phil Petty shares hilarious impression of Lou Holtz
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Lou Holtz engineered a turnaround at South Carolina that saw a team that finished 0-11 in his first season in 1999 go a combined 17-7 and record back-to-back Outback Bowl victories in his next 2 years.
Part of the Gamecocks’ turn-of-the-century success was partially due to the efforts of quarterback Phil Petty, who currently sits 7th in the school’s record book with 5,656 career passing yards. During an appearance on “The Spurs Up Show”, Petty shared a few memories of playing for the legendary head coach, including one story that occurred during the team’s first practice one spring.
“One thing’s for sure. You come to the University of South Carolina for one of two reasons. A, you’re a loser. Or B, you just like to surround yourself with other losers,” Petty recounted while doing his best Holtz impression. “He would say stuff like, ‘It’s not your fault, son. It’s your parents’ fault. You were just born a loser.'”
Holtz probably wasn’t as quotable as his successor, Steve Spurrier, but he clearly had a few zingers of his own.
Watch the video below:
I’ve heard some pretty damn good Lou Holtz impersonations in my day.
With that being said, former #Gamecocks QB Phil Petty’s just might be the best.
Enjoy ??? pic.twitter.com/dNzHohfdWl
— SEC Unfiltered (@SECUnfiltered) August 16, 2021
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
