Ranking Notre Dame Football’s Greatest Coaches of All Time

The history of college football can't be told without several chapters involving Notre Dame.

From humble beginnings to building America's Team in the sport, to dark days at different times, and head coaches that ultimately saved things, Notre Dame's football history is legendary.

So when you have a history like that, how do you go about ranking its greatest coaches of all-time?

When you say certain names from Notre Dame, you're not just talking about the best to ever do it in South Bend, but some of the very best to ever do it in the sport.

With the recent passing of Lou Holtz, the definitive list of Notre Dame's greatest head football coaches has been on my mind, so I went about finally putting it together.

Below is what I came up with, which I'm certain you'll all agree with.

10. N/A

I tried to get this list to 10 names, but there isn't a valid tenth that deserves to be mentioned. As great as Notre Dame's football history is, there are a lot of dark eras in it as well.

9. Elmer Layden: 1934-1940 (47-13-3)

The former Four Horsemen led Notre Dame for seven seasons, never losing more than three games in a single year. His 47 career wins at Notre Dame remain the seventh-most in program history, as he led the Fighting Irish to three top-10 finishes.

8. Marcus Freeman: 2022-Current (43-12)

Freeman has a chance to rocket up this list as his five seasons have him already safely included. He's coached Notre Dame to a national championship appearance and is already tied for the most post-season wins in program history.

Can he end the national championship drought is the big remaining question.

7. Brian Kelly: 2010-2021 (113-40)

The way Brian Kelly left Notre Dame will never be forgotten but he was the right coach at the right time for what the football program needed. He played a major role in modernizing Notre Dame football and bringing it back to national relevance, but his failure in big games keep him from being any higher, despite winning more games than any other coach in program history.

6. Jesse Harper: 1913-1917 (34-5-1)

Before you can fly, you've got to run, and before you run, you've got to walk. Harper first put Notre Dame on the map and laid the foundation for Rockne to take it to a whole different level shortly after. Without Harper, there is no Rockne, and without Rockne, we aren't doing this list.

5. Dan Devine: 1975-1980 (53-16-1)

Notre Dame took a step back under Devine when he took over for Ara Parseghian, but he did keep the program at a high level nationally as he won the 1977 national championship and led the Irish to four top 10 finishes.

4. Lou Holtz: 1986-1996 (100-30-2)

Classic Lou Holtz☘️

“I think we proved we belong here.”#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/WjNLDBP7ri
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) March 4, 2026

Lou inherited a complete mess from the Gerry Faust disaster and returned Notre Dame to national prominence. The Irish played in New Year's Day bowl games each season from 1987 to 1995 under his watch and won the 1988 national championship. Holtz very well could have had two or three more titles, with extremely close calls in 1989, 1990, and 1993.

3. Ara Parseghian: 1964-1974 (95-17-4)

Parseghian immediately brought Notre Dame football back from the dead, turning the Irish from a brutal 2-7 season in 1963 to a 9-1 mark and within minutes of a national championship in 1964.

Ara would get his national titles with the Irish in 1966 and 1973 and left the program with the second-most wins in program history at the time.

2. Frank Leahy: 1941-1943, 1946-1953 (87-11-9)

Those who don't include Leahy on the short list of the sport's greatest coaches simply don't know the game.

Leahy led Notre Dame to four national championships and oversaw a program that didn't lose a single game from 1946 to 1949.

There is certainly a strong case for Leahy to be atop this list.

1. Knute Rockne: 1918-1930 (105-12-5)

Freaking awesome colored footage.

Knute Rockne & Notre Dame.

pic.twitter.com/aYnHkpEi49
— Last of the Fullbacks (@TheLastFullback) April 19, 2025

Rockne took what Harper started to build and expanded in the biggest of ways. Despite being blackballed by the Big Ten (Western Conference at the time), Rockne made Notre Dame football a traveling road show and put it on display nationally against the biggest of foes.

In a matter of years, he led Notre Dame to the 1925 national championship and would add two more before his untimely death following the 1930 season.

There is no more important coach in any sport than Rockne in college football, so even if his titles don't match Leahy's, how do you not put him at No. 1?