The Illustrious Career of Chad Fitzgerald "Skip" Holtz

Jun 16, 2025 0

Louis "Skip" Holtz, born on March 12, 1964, in Willimantic, Connecticut, has established himself as a prominent figure in college football. Holtz has been credited for developing high-powered and prolific offenses throughout his coaching career. His journey through the world of football is marked by numerous achievements, challenges, and a consistent drive to build successful programs.

Skip Holtz enters his ninth year as the head coach at Louisiana Tech after former Louisiana Tech University President Dr. Dan Reneau introduced him as the 33rd head football coach of the Bulldogs during a press conference on Friday, Dec.

Holtz's career is a testament to his dedication and passion for the sport, marked by numerous achievements and contributions to the teams he has led. Let's delve into the different phases of his coaching journey.

Early Career and Assistant Coaching Roles

Holtz spent the first two years of his life in Connecticut while his father served as the top football assistant on the Huskies' staff from 1964-65. He attended Holy Cross Junior College in South Bend, Ind., for two years before transferring to Notre Dame in 1984, earning a B.S. degree.

Holtz has also served on the coaching staffs at Florida State and Colorado State. While serving on Bobby Bowden's FSU staff in 1987 and ‘88, the Seminoles rolled to a 22-2 record, captured the Sugar and Fiesta Bowl titles and earned a No. 2 and No.

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Prior to taking the head coaching job at UConn, Holtz worked on the offensive staff under his father at Notre Dame. During those years, Holtz was in charge of one of the country's most potent offensive attacks - a period in which the Irish compiled a 21-2-1 record. The 1992 Notre Dame offense ranked third nationally in total offense, averaging better than 470 yards per game. The 1993 Irish offense, despite the loss of All-America running backs Jerome Bettis and Reggie Brooks, ended the season ranked No. 9 in scoring offense (36.6 points per game).

In all, he has been involved in eight New Year's Day bowl games during his coaching career.

Bowl Game Appearances as Assistant Coach

Fiesta Bowl (Florida State 31, Nebraska 28) - No.
Sugar Bowl (Florida State 13, Auburn 7) - No.
Orange Bowl (Colorado 10, Notre Dame 9) - No.
Sugar Bowl (Notre Dame 39, Florida 28) - No.
Cotton Bowl (Notre Dame 28, Texas A&M 3) - No.
Cotton Bowl (Notre Dame 24, Texas A&M 21) - No.
Outback Bowl (South Carolina 24, Ohio State 7) - No.
Outback Bowl (South Carolina 31, Ohio State 28) - No.

Head Coaching Career

University of Connecticut (UConn)

Holtz came to South Carolina after a successful five-year stint as head coach at fellow BIG EAST school, Connecticut. During his last season at Connecticut, he led the Huskies to a then-school-record 10 victories and an appearance in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs.

The success Holtz earned on the field at Connecticut during his first head coaching tenure was matched by his involvement in the community as a successful speaker, clinician and humanitarian - often donating his time and effort to many charitable and educational organizations. He served as the honorary chairman for Camp Courant in Hartford for four consecutive years, helping fund-raising efforts to send more than 1,000 under-privileged area children to recreational and educational camps during the summer. Holtz was honored in 1996 with the National Football Foundation Man-of-the-Year Award and was a member of the Foundation's ethics committee. He was also the recipient of the Franciscan Life Center's St.

East Carolina University (ECU)

Skip Holtz became East Carolina's 19th head football coach in the school's all-time history on Dec. Holtz went to USF after five seasons at East Carolina, where he won back-to-back Conference USA Championships in 2008 and `09 and finished with a 38-27 record. Holtz led ECU to unprecedented heights, including four-straight winning seasons, a quartet of bowl game appearances and the back-to-back league crowns.

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He quickly revived the lifeline of a once-proud tradition which had stumbled to record just three wins in a 25-game period two-plus seasons prior to his arrival. Holtz followed by using a combination of both in 2007, offering a well-balanced offense and a run-stopping, ball-hawking defense to lead East Carolina to its highest Conference USA win total in school history at that time. In addition to guiding ECU to its first postseason win since 2000 with a 41-38 victory over No. 24 Boise State in the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl, Holtz fine-tuned the efforts of running back Chris Johnson, who was college football's national statistical champion in all-purpose yards. Johnson also became the program's second first-round draft choice (first since 1992) when the Tennessee Titans selected him with their initial pick in April, 2008.

The Pirates impressively finished the job in 2008, not only by finally earning a spot in the league's title game, but delivering a knock-out blow to Tulsa on to the road to claim the program's first conference title in 32 years and earning a bid to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. During that season, Holtz led the Pirates to a No. 14 ranking in the polls and victories over No. 17 Virginia Tech and No.

Holtz continued his success at East Carolina in 2009, leading the Pirates to a second consecutive Conference USA Championship. The Pirates' triumph over a nationally-ranked and explosive Houston squad, which was played out in Greenville because of a school-record seven-win conference season, served as a testament to the leadership of Holtz' seniors - a group which were part of his first signing class.

Perhaps more impressive than the early headlines and No. 14 national ranking the Pirates earned after handing No. 17 Virginia Tech and No. 8 West Virginia setbacks to open the season, was Holtz' ability to navigate one injury hurdle after another and keep ECU's focus down the stretch. In all, the Pirates used 44 different starters throughout the year as a total of 15 starters and 26 members of his two-deep were lost for at least one contest during the campaign - five suffering season-ending injuries early or at the midway point of the year.

In 2008, Holtz earned Conference USA Coach of the Year honors, while leading the Pirates to a spot in the Conference USA Championship game. ECU defeated Tulsa to claim the program's first conference title in 32 years, earning a bid to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.

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University of South Florida (USF)

Skip Holtz was hired as the University of South Florida's second head football coach on Jan. In his first season at South Florida, Holtz promptly led the Bulls to their fifth consecutive eight-win season, making them one of just 15 teams nationally that had won at least eight games during that time span and one of only 10 teams in BCS leagues to accomplish the feat. In addition, USF played in its sixth consecutive bowl game, a 31-26 victory over Clemson in the Meineke Car Care Bowl. At the time, USF was one of just six programs nationally that had reached postseason play in each year as a BCS league member.

In 2010, USF accomplished numerous firsts under Holtz. The Bulls won at Cincinnati and at Louisville for the first time in program history and beat Rutgers in Tampa for the first time. The 2011 season showed major improvement on the field, if not in the record, as USF finished 5-7 thanks to numerous heartbreaking defeats. After starting 4-0, including a huge win at Notre Dame to open the season, the Bulls dropped six of their final seven games by a combined 28 points or 4.7 points per game. Included in those six losses were four 3-point defeats, three of which came on the final play of the game.

Looking passed the wins and losses, the Bulls improved in virtually every statistical category, especially on offense. USF improved its national ranking in total offense 75 spots from 2010 to 2011, the largest jump of any school in the country. The biggest improvement came in the passing game, where USF improved by 85 yards per game. Only two teams saw a greater jump in the passing offense national rankings. In addition, the Bulls improved 39 spots in rushing offense.

Louisiana Tech University

Skip Holtz enters his ninth year as the head coach at Louisiana Tech. In 2019, Holtz guided LA Tech to a 10-win season which marked the first time since 1984 that the program produced double-digit victories. The 10th win came in the 2019 Walk On's Independence Bowl as the Bulldogs shut out the Miami Hurricanes, 14-0, in Shreveport. LA Tech won all six games at Joe Aillet Stadium as well, marking the first time since 1973 that the program produced an undefeated season of 6-0.

In 2020, Holtz oversaw a season unlike any before as the world was faced with the COVID-19 pandemic. During the season, Tech had four games canceled and one postponed to finish the season with a 5-5 overall mark. Holtz guided defensive lineman Milton Williams to be named a third team All-American by Pro Football Focus, while linebacker Tyler Grubbs was named a freshman All-American by the FWAA, ESPN and 247Sports.com. In total, Holtz saw nine players earn first or second team all-Conference USA honors during the 2020 season and coached quarterback Luke Anthony to be named the 2020 C-USA Newcomer of the Year.

In 2016, Holtz earned Conference USA Coach of the Year honors after he guided the Bulldogs to yet another highly successful campaign as LA Tech finished the season with a 9-5 overall record, a Conference USA West Division title and a thrilling 48-45 victory over No. The 2016 team had arguably the greatest offensive in school history, producing a program-record 620 total points and 7,206 total yards. The Bulldogs averaged 44.3 points per game that year, the second most in FBS.

It was in his second season at the helm that the program started its winning streak as Holtz and the Bulldogs enjoyed a five-win improvement, going 9-5 and taking the Conference USA West Division title in the program's second year as a member of the league. In his eight years at LA Tech, Holtz has amassed 61 victories as head coach which is the third most in program history and he is one win shy of his 150th career victory as a head coach.

Holtz has participated in 22 postseason games in his coaching career, including 14 as a head coach and eight as an assistant coach.

Conference USA Coach of the Year

2016
2008