The consensus of all intelligent humans is that Lou Holtz was a great coach, a great man, and a great American. The consensus of those same intelligent humans is that the oft-fired Keith Olbermann was a failure in his profession, a failure as a man, and a terrible American.
So, perhaps it should not surprise that Olbermann would stoop so low as to take a parting shot at Holtz when he’s not around to defend himself. But that’s okay, plenty of people online were ready to defend the legendary coach from the likes of Olbermann.
On Wednesday, the sports world was rocked by news that Holtz, the legendary Notre Dame coach and College Football Hall of Famer, had passed away at the age of 89. Tributes poured in from fans, politicians, athletes, coaches, and media alike.
That is, except for one Keith Theodore Olbermann.
Captioning a post that included a 2020 video of Holtz criticizing pro-abortionist Joe Biden for being a “Catholic in name only,” Olbermann wrote of the coach, “Legendary scumbag, yes.”
The reception to Olbermann’s remark did not go over well in the comments.
One of the more touching tributes to Holtz came from ESPN’s Mike Greenberg, who credited the coach with giving him the best advice he ever received, not about sports or his career, but about fatherhood.
“This story is now more than 25 years old, and I have told it more times than I can count, but it hits very differently today. I was anchoring SportsCenter one afternoon, and Lou Holtz was on the show. I was quite excited to talk with him; he had been an icon all of my life,” Greenberg wrote on social media. “He was very friendly, asking me all about myself as we walked toward the studio to record an interview. I told him: ‘Actually, Coach, it’s quite exciting, my wife and I are expecting our first child in the next few weeks.’
“He stopped dead in his tracks and put a finger up near my face. And I’ll never forget what he said: ‘Young man, the most important thing you can do for a child is make sure every day they know how much you love their mother.’ And, just like that, he started walking again. Our daughter was born a month later, our son came two years after that. And I have thought about what Lou HOLTZ said to me that day about a million times since. RIP Coach, thanks for the best advice anyone ever gave me.”
Lou Holtz leaves behind a loving family, several grateful universities, thousands of grateful athletes, and tens of thousands (if not millions) of loyal and loving fans and admirers who will never forget him. Not the least of which is the current president of the United States.
Keith Olbermann will leave behind a timeline of mean tweets…maybe a dog.
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