Notre Dame to honor legendary coach Lou Holtz with helmet decal
Published:
Lou Holtz won 100 games as the head coach for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. He led the program to its last national championship (1988) and finished second in the AP poll two other times (1989, 1993). The Fighting Irish mourned his loss in March, and will be taking the field with a memento to him this season.
On Wednesday, Notre Dame revealed it will have a helmet decal for Holtz in 2026. The decal features the name “Lou” with hands holding up the letter “L” on both sides.
From 1987-1995, Holtz took the Fighting Irish to what are now known as the New Year’s Six bowls nine straight seasons. He won two Cotton Bowls, an Orange Bowl, a Sugar Bowl and Fiesta Bowl in that stretch. His 34-21 Fiesta Bowl triumph over No. 3 West Virginia clinched Notre Dame’s 1988 national championship.
That year, the Fighting Irish prevailed over four top-10 teams, including Michigan, USC and then-No. 1 Miami in the famed “Catholics vs. Convicts” game.
Notre Dame has played for the national championship twice since 2010, but fell short of glory both times. There’s a lot of confidence in the Fighting Irish this year, though. They are one of the betting favorites to win this year’s College Football Playoff. They were also Kirk Herbstreit and Joel Galloway’s pick to win the CFP. Notre Dame begins its season on Sunday, Sept. 6, versus Wisconsin at Lambeau Field (7:30 p.m. E.T., NBC).
