Even to this day, Urban Meyer still has a reminder sitting right on his desk that traces everything back to one man: Lou Holtz, the man who launched his coaching career. It’s a line of advice he once received before the 2006 BCS National Championship. That relationship came rushing back into public view this week as the news of the 89-year-old’s passing shocked the nation. 

On March 5, Urban Meyer posted three photos of himself, Holtz, and his wife, Shelley, on X and added a heartfelt tribute: 

“The impact of a great mentor lasts a lifetime,” he wrote. “I’m thankful for everything Coach Holtz poured into me and our family. Will always Love Ya Coach!”

Urban Meyer was right there with his wife beside Lou Holtz when he was in hospice care, and it was an emotional meeting. He revealed his wife got emotional because the family knows how much he impacted their lives. Before Meyer became the national title-winning coach at Florida and Ohio State, Holtz was the one who gave him his first shot.

In 1996, Lou Holtz brought Urban Meyer to Notre Dame as WRs coach after he spent six years at Colorado State. At the time, the head coach was wrapping up the final season of a remarkable run with the Fighting Irish, a tenure that included a 100-30-2 record and the unforgettable 1988 national championship. He revealed then that the mentorship came in a different form. 

“They were the kind of people that weren’t much about patting you on the back,” he explained, referencing Lou Holtz and his earlier mentor Earle Bruce. “But it was always about how to get better.”

And that tough-love approach showed up again when Urban Meyer reached a crossroads early in his career. Years later, when Bowling Green offered him his first head coaching job, he initially turned it down as the program wasn’t in great shape. He wasn’t convinced it was the right move, but Lou Holtz was adamant. 

“Of course it’s not a great job,” he told him. “If it’s a great job, they wouldn’t be calling your a*s.”

That made Urban Meyer hang up the phone, call Bowling Green back, and accept the job. He flipped a 2-8 Falcons script immediately by finishing 8-3 in his first season. He finished 17-6 over two seasons, won the 2001 MAC Coach of the Year, and climbed to No. 20 in the final AP poll. From there, he got the chance to coach at Utah, Florida, and eventually Ohio State, eventually racking up three national championships. But it all started at Bowling Green.

Last May, there was an On-Campus Salute for Urban Meyer at Bowling Green’s Doyt Perry Stadium. He got his first salute for his first head coaching job. He called the program “an integral part” of his trajectory and said he’s proud to be a Falcon for life.

Lou Holtz’s philosophy about coaching also stuck with Urban Meyer long after their Notre Dame days ended.

“His love for his players,” he explained, “and I used to say this, as well, to people. Love is not soft. If you love your children and you see them doing stupid things, you’d better not say, ‘Oh, kids will be kids.’ No, no, no, no. End it. Stop it. Same thing with your players. He believed there was greatness in everyone, Lou Holtz did. He would say that. There was greatness in that kid. You find it as a coach.”

And as the sport paused to remember Lou Holtz, the tributes show that his influence went far beyond the coaches he mentored.

The community honors Lou Holtz’s legacy

From politicians to former players and programs he once led, Lou Holtz’s passing came as painful news. Illinois State Rep. Kam Buckner lingered on the moment the coach recruited him while coaching at South Carolina.

“Like a lot of Chicago kids, I grew up watching Lou Holtz on the sidelines at Notre Dame,” he said. “I was incredibly honored that our paths crossed years later when he recruited me during his time at South Carolina. I ultimately chose a different path, but the chance to sit with him, hear his vision, and learn from a man who meant so much to the game is something I’ll never forget. Coach Holtz is a true legend of college football.”

Even SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey had Holtz to thank for the impact he had. “Lou Holtz was a giant of college football whose influence on the game is matched only by the impact he had on people,” Sankey wrote. “When I was a new member of the SEC office staff, Coach Holtz was incredibly kind and supportive of me. I visited with him last year when he was in Fayetteville, and I thanked him for his help and encouragement when I first began working in the SEC.”

Programs he was once part of chimed in. Notre Dame released a tribute video honoring his legacy in South Bend, where he recorded 100 wins and delivered the program’s last national championship. Minnesota football also paid respects to their former head coach from the 1984-85 seasons, while Kent State remembered the impact Lou Holtz had on their program and the sport overall. 

Down in Columbia, South Carolina, fans mourned the coach who revived their program in the late 1990s and early 2000s. But aside from his winning field records, Lou Holtz launched careers, shaped leaders, and left a mark that still shows up decades later. And that side of him remains etched forever in memory.