Wolfman

January 27th, 2016 at 2:22 AM ^

not in that he pulled shit at a level that was hard to keep up with. This is true, but I think it was actuallly at ND that he got caught. If it wasn't him, it was the coach right after him, but I am almost certain Lou was the coach during the entire Kim Dunbar scandal. It was nothing big, just her paying a lot of players cash for sexual favors. Guess that is frowned upon by the NCAA, but anyone considered a booster, and she qualified as such isn't supposed to do that.

But if it's about coaching, I have to agree with the board members who realize him as a great fb coach. His teams were tough as hell and it seems that almost every game I can recall us playing when he was the coach, the team with the ball last, although not always successful, either pulled it out or came damn close. Some very intense, down-to-the-wire contests that I am not certain my nerves of 2016 could set through. Simply great games and he had as much competivenesss in him as did Bo and as does Jim,

Having him speak as a football coach I get.  This is the first go around for this event, right? So obviously I'm not sure what it's all about except, I think to cap a great two seasons, one on the field, and one on the recruiting cycle. I can't imagine Jim inviting anyone that would take away from the intent of his message.

I am very comfortable in stating that a large percentage of the people that cfb has made famous, be it as a coach or as a player, are fully aware of that. There are a few, however, who are more than willing to try to do as much for the game as it has done for them. Harbaugh, though his messages are often seen by others as just another means to gain some type of advantage, is definitely one who knows the game is bigger than he when all the chips are counted and is willing to do as much as he can, while he can, to help promote and point out all that is good about the game. I don't hesitate for a second in including Lou in that group. And if that's what it's all about, a celebration of the game itself, than I am very comfortable having Coach Holtz there. Hell, I wish Saban and Dabo would come as well. Saban because he is who is he is and Dabo because he's as nuts as the one that runs our program.

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Wolverine Devotee

January 26th, 2016 at 8:27 PM ^

Interesting factoid:

Lou Holtz's first game as ND head coach was a 24-23 loss to Michigan in 1986:

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4yearsofhoke

January 26th, 2016 at 8:48 PM ^

Idk why people have a ton of hate for Holz. 1. He can't help his speech. 2. He loves ND, so what? Would you be mad at Bo or JH for loving Michigan. 3. He obviously was a good coach who cares about his players and tbh in the NCAA that's all you can ask for. Helped kids get a damn education at ND and also get into the league.

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KC Wolve

January 26th, 2016 at 8:59 PM ^

Being a Michigan fan is the best. People are genuinely pissed about this. Not like, this is sort of stupid pissed, but I'm fucking mad about this pissed.

"I don't want this guy at our completely over the top, ridiculous, signing day spectacular!!!!!!! This is Michigan!!!!!!"



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Wall

January 26th, 2016 at 9:10 PM ^

I honestly like Lou, he's a stand up guy and was a good football coach in his day. I think him and Harbugh share the same enthusiasm of not only coaching, but helping mold young boys into young men. 

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LSAClassOf2000

January 26th, 2016 at 10:20 PM ^

It's not just umbrellas - that's not sufficient. If Lou Holtz is going to attend and be expected to interact at an event of any size, you need someone who is willing to do a Christo-sized installation with umbrellas to provide the necessary cover, or alternatively, to wrap enough of the building and its contents in something. Actually, you may need Christo himself - I believe he is still around. It might be the only way things stay dry. 

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DrAwkward

January 26th, 2016 at 10:08 PM ^

I just perused the list of "celebrities" and now understand why Lou Holtsh was invited.

The other celebrities aren't. At least most people know who Uncle Lou is.

• Todd McShay (yeah, OK, I guess)
• Jessica Szohr (who?)
• Josh Gracin (who?)

Harbaugh has never been afraid of homers from other schools. He invited other coaches to his satelitte clinics ...

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Alumnus93

January 26th, 2016 at 11:04 PM ^

many hate holtz here. yet when I was a student in Ann arbor his ND team was great every year. Kelly finally brought them back somewhat but not to the level holtz had them. he was a great coach there

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Wolfman

January 27th, 2016 at 12:47 AM ^

with the understanding that prior to taking the ND job - it was down - he told the then A.D. that he would take the job, but only if admissions standards were relaxed to the point that allowed him access to the following players: Starting qb whose name escaped me, Jerome "The Bus" Bettis, Rocket Ishmail, a couple more players of far above average talent and quite a number, in total, that would not have been admitted on standards in place prior to his hiring. This, in itself is not necessarily a bad thing, but when comparing him to other ND coaches, it should be noted they did so under far greater restrictions.

Its not as if their standards are at Stanford strength, but overall pretty damn good. After the Faust debacle - who the hell thinks a h.s. coach is capable of competing at the highest level of D1?-   But after Faust, the A.D. in order to get a good coach really was in no position to argue.

So Lou, ND already enjoying as much national clout as anyone, was allowed access to even more players and he got them what they wanted, that NC.  But when told they were returning to prior admissions standards, he decided to retire, saying, "I do not want to be the one to break Rockne's record as ND's all-time winningest coach." What a bunch of shit. All coaches want to be remembered the best at whatever school they coached.

He told Davie, when he hired him as DC, that he would make certain he was ready to be a good head coach by time he left. . I am certain, if allowed the liberties Lou had when coaching, he(Bob) would have had a better record, but his retirement definitely coincided with ND's slide, a rather lengthy one that went through shit 5, 6 coaches.

But I cannot agrue, Lou will be recognized as a good to great coach. Personally, I thought the job he did at Arkansas was excellent. Absolutely hated him as an announcer though, a position in which he never tried to hide his allegiance to ND, And if anyone should have known better it was a cfb coach, but on air he sounded like the typical ND fan at times, failing to recognize the obstacles and announcing them pretty much every year as "in the hunt for another crown."
 

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Ali G Bomaye

January 27th, 2016 at 11:01 AM ^

I'm not saying that Holtz didn't ask for ND to lower its admissions standards so that he could sign more players, but some of your examples are off.  For instance, Jerome Bettis was about to start his freshman season in high school when Holtz was hired at ND, so I doubt he was on the radar as a must-have prospect.  Even Ismail had just completed his sophomore season of high school at the time, so even if he was a good prospect I doubt he was a condition of Holtz taking the job.

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I dumped the Dope

January 27th, 2016 at 12:37 AM ^

Lou Holtz for Preshadent!

Odd Fo Sho but Whatever Man. If Harbaugh thinks its a Good Idea I think its a Great Idea.

I would think they would have Mo and Lloyd and Dez, maybe Jon Jansen.  How about the Brown Bear himself ? Tom Brady should theoretically be available...

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Wolfman

January 27th, 2016 at 1:02 AM ^

I fully realize Steve Everitt looks like he could tour with ZZ Topp, but if you want someone that embodies the word toughness, look no further. He does look rather slim nowdays, but I'm certain that is the camera and he's probably in great shape.

I'll never forget the hit he took in the ND game, had his jaw wired shut and just to make the degree of difficulty unquestioned, he learned to snap with the other hand in one week's time in order not to miss a game. True football player.

Don't know what he does for a living, but if he were going to speak, you might want to schedule him in for later in the day, say near the end of the session. Remember the last golf outing he attended that they gave an account of afterwards. Shows up in tennis shoes, no clubs, tells someone in the clubhouse to throw a set together for him and hops on someone's cart with about 4 clubs in a bag and takes part in the proceedings. I can guarantee one thing. No matter what he's attending, he will never feel out of his element. He is about the most unpretentious person I've ever seen. Oh yeah, and even if no one else does, he'll have a great time.

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Wolfman

January 27th, 2016 at 2:19 AM ^

 

Despite the reasons behind the jokes in this thread, the natural rivalry between UM and ND, remember even Danotinio took a minute out to acknowledge Lloyd's struggle as more important than the game he was about to discuss, and Lou knows why he has been invited.  He is well known for earning a ton of cash as a motivational speaker and if given a little thought, one who suffers(No, I think acknowledges is the better choice here) he was born with  a speech impediment, one who has managed to provide the motivation from sping practice through the end of the year, required of a National Championship team(no matter what anyone tells you, this is of far more importance than Xs and Os) realizes his lack of clarity on certain words  is of far less importance than his message and is able to deliver the message notwithstanding this awareness might just very well possess a resume far more impressive than anyone else in the lineup. This is a guy that receives politician like money for his speeches. He is obviously going to deliver the message he's paid to deliver, and he is not one hurting for cash. In fact, if he did not believe in the message Jim is asking him to convey, he would have politely turned down the intvitiation. It's not going to be a message extolling the virtues of Michigan, although it's a Michigan event. It's going to be about what Jim holds important. We will all learn, if we open our ears. As much as his values, being a ND homer, clashes with ours, he and Jim are on the same page as to what the message is  they want to convey. Rest easy my friends. I am not so certain he will not receive the warmest round of applause at the end of his speech than anyone in attendance. Desmond might receive more at the beginning, but  this guy is a  pro and will come through as such.

 

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NorthSideBlueFan

January 27th, 2016 at 6:01 AM ^

If he chooses to be a part of the event, who cares where he coached? The more exposure the event gets the better. The guy has been a highly paid, high profile corporate event key note speaker for nearly 30 years and does a great job at it.
The board getting all butt hurt and acting like they know more than the athletic department and coaching staff about who should and shouldn't be in attendance is truly laughable.

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