Lou Holtz. Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

Lou Holtz's newspaper magic trick resurfaces after national championship-winning coach's death

By Clark Dalton | Last updated Mar 4, 2026 9:40 PM ET

Former head coach/ESPN analyst Lou Holtz died at 89 in Orlando on Wednesday. He will be remembered as one of the most successful college football coaches ever and for his love of magic tricks.

Holtz used magic tricks throughout his football life to motivate teams. One of them surfaced on social media shortly after the announcement of his death.

Lou Holtz's newspaper magic trick goes viral

The Athletic's Chris Vannini shared a clip of Holtz speaking with the Texas Longhorns. The year was unspecified. In the clip, the former Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach began shredding a newspaper and crumpling it into a ball. But then, he reopened it again as if he had never ripped it. He used this to teach his players never to let critics or negativity tear them or the team apart.

"The Lou Holtz newspaper trick has been stuck in my head for more than a decade. Blows my mind every time," wrote Vannini.

The Lou Holtz newspaper trick has been stuck in my head for more than a decade. Blows my mind every time. pic.twitter.com/kPvGpa0r0i
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) March 4, 2026

Holtz began dabbling in magic when hired as North Carolina State Wolfpack HC before the 1972 season.

"I did it to fool the children, and then we turned it around so rapidly, people started calling me a magician," he said while returning to the school in September 2006. "Then I got a call from Barry Cooper, the president of the local magicians guild. He said I was an embarrassment, and then he came over to teach me some magic tricks. That's where the magic began for me."

He carried that to every stop throughout his 33-year collegiate coaching career. Holtz, who went 249-132-7, is the only coach to lead six different programs to a bowl game. During the 1988 season, he guided Notre Dame to a 12-0 season and a national championship. The Fighting Irish haven't won a title since.

Some may have viewed his methods as quirky. But as Holtz told United Press International after the Minnesota Golden Gophers hired him as HC in January 1984, "If we can't have fun doing something, I don't want to do it."

That philosophy clearly helped Holtz during his storied college career. It reminded him to bring the magic wherever he went.

Clark Dalton

Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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