Lou Holtz, the coach who revitalized the Minnesota Gophers’ football program in the 1980s before going on to win a national championship at Notre Dame, has died. He was 89.

Lou Holtz, then University of Minnesota football head coach, in the Metrodome in Minneapolis during the 1984 season. (Courtesy of University of Minnesota Athletic Communications)

Notre Dame announced on Wednesday that Holtz died in Orlando, Fla., surrounded by his family. Spokeswoman Katy Lonergan said a cause of death was not provided by the family.

The College Football Hall of Famer led Notre Dame to the 1988 national championship and won 249 games over 33 seasons at six schools.

Holtz became the first and so far only coach to lead six different teams to bowl games during a career in which he compiled a record of 249-132-7. He still ranks 10th all-time in career victories by a Football Bowl Subdivision coach, eighth all-time with 388 games coached.

At Notre Dame, he went 100-30-2 in 11 seasons, producing both the third-highest win total in school history and the second-highest loss total.

Holtz led the previously-moribund Gophers to a 10-12 record during his 1984-85 reign in Minneapolis. He left for Notre Dame before Minnesota’s appearance in the 1985 Independence Bowl, where they beat Clemson.

Minnesota Gophers football head coach Lou Holtz, left, and quarterback Rickey Foggie at the Bierman Sports Complex in Minneapolis on August 28, 1985. (Sully Doroshow / Pioneer Press)

Holtz won at every stop — except for a brief stint in the NFL with the 1976 New York Jets.

He didn’t just win games, either. The diminutive coach captivated fans with his occasionally fiery sideline demeanor, his self-deprecating wit and folksy phrases all while demanding excellence, on and off the field, from his much larger players.

Holtz became such a popular personality that after coaching his last game, in 2004 with South Carolina, he parlayed that into a broadcasting career and motivational speaking.

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