Lou Holtz Sounds Off on How Notre Dame Fans Have Changed

The legendary head football coach was in attendance for Notre Dame's season-opening loss at Miami

Jan 10, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Two time Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year recipient Lou Holtz speaks during Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year press conference at Renaissance Hotel Dallas. | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

Notre Dame's season-opening loss was played in front of a sold-out crowd at Miami, a rare case for the Hurricanes, who play roughly 20 miles from the actual University of Miami campus.

Among the record-setting 66,793 fans at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday night was former Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz, who led the Fighting Irish to the 1988 national championship and stood toe to toe with Jimmy Johnson at the rivalries' peak.

Holtz joined Dan Dakich on Don't At Me on Outkick Wednesday, and spoke to a difference in the crowd from his coaching days.

Lou Holtz Noticed a Difference in the Miami Crowd vs. Notre Dame

Aug 31, 2025; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA;Miami Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal before the game at Hard Rock Stadium. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

"I'll tell you what I was shocked at," said Holtz, "I was shocked at how many Miami fans were at that game."

"That whole stadium was orange and that's unusual. When we went on the road half of the stadium was Notre Dame but I had trouble finding a lot of Notre Dame fans there."

The crowd was large, hostile, and did Notre Dame as many favors as the Irish did themselves, by only handing Jeremiyah Love the ball four times in the entire first half.

Holtz had more to offer Dakich during the interview, taking the opportunity to take another shot at Ohio State head coach Ryan Day.

Lou Holtz Takes Another Shot at Ryan Day

Two years ago, Holtz took a shot at Ryan Day, saying his teams weren't physical enough, and cited it as the reason for the only losses the program had suffered until Day's watch. The day after the interview, Ohio State beat Notre Dame 17-14 in Notre Dame Stadium, stunning the Irish on the final play of the game.

Holtz had more to offer Day and Ohio State during the interview, and again chose not to hold back.

Lou Holtz on Ryan Day & Ohio State 👀

"They're not a great football team. I would not be overwhelmed about facing Ohio State... I wrote him a congratulatory letter but I never heard back from him."@dandakich @CoachLouHoltz88 pic.twitter.com/NuDOBMAvMq

— OutKick (@Outkick) September 3, 2025

"They're not a great football team," Holtz said, "When you're at home and you're outgained by over 100 yards, you just can't look at it and say 'OK, we're great'..."

"They are 1-0 and that's the objective they had going into that game, but they're not a great football team, I would not be overwhelmed by facing Ohio State."

Dakich then asked Holtz if he had reached out to Ryan Day, after Ohio State beat Notre Dame in last season's national championship game.

"Ryan Day can be Ryan Day and do whatever he wants," Holtz answered, "I did write him a congratulatory letter, but I never heard back from him."

"I'm sure he can write, but in any event he didn't answer the letter, but that's his alternative."

Nick Shepkowski's Quick Takeaway:

Oct 28, 1989; South Bend, IN, USA; FILE PHOTO; Notre Dame Irish head coach Lou Holtz on the sideline at Notre Dame Stadium. | RVR Photos-Imagn Images

I don't know what Ryan Day initially did or said to Lou Holtz to set him off, but it's clear this is more than some friendly joke between the two.

Holtz is 88 years old, has lived a full life, and was an incredibly successful football coach, but at this stage, he still enjoys taking a shot at Day seemingly whenever he can.

I can't say airing the grievances makes a whole lot of sense to me, but then again, Holtz has been this way for as long as he's been in the public eye. Why would he go and change now?