TV Catches Pep Talk as Holtz Rips Colorado

MIAMI —  Through the wizardry of videotape and the absent-mindedness of Lou Holtz, a sometimes scathing pep talk meant only for the ears of Notre Dame players became the center of attention Friday.

Actually, the viewers of Denver-based KCNC-TV were treated to the footage late Thursday evening, but it wasn’t until Friday morning that transcripts of Holtz’s impromptu speech, made shortly before a Thursday afternoon practice session, were circulated among the assembled Orange Bowl media and, of course, distributed to an irate University of Colorado football team.

According to the videotape transcript, Holtz intimated that comments attributed to Notre Dame players, specifically quarterback Tony Rice, were being twisted and tailored to fit the motivational needs of the Colorado team. Holtz also suggested that this wasn’t the first time a Colorado opponent’s quotes had been used to the Buffaloes’ advantage.

“Let me tell you what. . . . They’ve been living a lie,” Holtz told his players Thursday. “They’ve been living a lie all year. Remember I told you . . . The coaches had problems withIllinois. They’re over there telling ‘em you guys say this, you saying that. That’s fine.

“They can’t be any more (sky) high than what they’re going to be. But we just have to make sure we take care of our football team. They’re expecting an outstanding football team and they’re going to see one. They’re going to see the best Notre Dame (unintelligible) . . . And we’re going to whip ‘em.”

Holtz didn’t stop there. In a departure from his public stance, he told his team that a victory over Colorado Monday night would guarantee the Irish a second consecutive national championship.

“The bad of it is Colorado feels they’re being slighted,” he said that day. “They’re going to be sky high and they don’t get any respect and all that other nonsense. The good thing is, it sends a message to everybody who votes that after we win the football game, they can’t do anything else but put Notre Dame No. 1. They can’t, believe me.”

Holtz then listed the reasons why a Notre Dame victory was so plausible.

“Number one, (Colorado is) used to scoring a lot of points,” he said. “They ain’t playing any Kansas State. We got to be patient on defense, just play our football game. On offense, we want to control the football. All we want (is) a first down, first down, first down. Frustration will set in on Colorado’s offense.

“By the middle of the third quarter, they will leave the game plan completely and start grab-bagging. Remember me telling you that. They are not patient. (Their) quarterback will want to make plays and we aren’t going to let him. Stop the bomb, control the quarterback. Those are two critical things along with the five areas we told you.”

On Friday, Holtz began the process of damage control. He said he was unaware of the TV crew’s presence at the workout, which was open to the media for 15 minutes, and that his earlier comments weren’t intended to demean the Colorado coaching staff or team.

“I don’t want to do anything where it would hurt or be derogatory to Colorado, and if that’s the way it’s interpreted, I sincerely apologize, because that wasn’t the intention,” he said. “The intention was to make our players aware of the various things that were being said and also to put their minds at ease that we could win the football game.”

He also said several of his remarks have been taken out of context.

“It wasn’t in reference to Colorado lies, or anything else along that line,” Holtz said. “But sometimes things are said or put in the paper that really aren’t accurate along that line. I just wanted our players to understand that.”

Holtz was referring to a midweek quote attributed to Rice in which the Notre Dame quarterback allegedly said that his team wanted to get another win under its belt, as if to imply that Colorado posed little challenge.

“An out and out lie. (Rice) didn’t say that,” Holtz said.

At an Orange Bowl Hall of Fame luncheon earlier in the day, Holtz explained his pep-talk comments to Colorado Coach Bill McCartney. Asked later if he would share the conversation with reporters, Holtz said, “I assumed it was taped.”

All in all, it wasn’t a banner day for Holtz. At that same luncheon, Holtz mistakenly told an audience of about 1,400 Orange Bowl supporters that Colorado was quarterbacked by Sal Aunese.

Prodded by master of ceremonies Bob Griese to list several Notre Dame negatives, McCartney knew just where to start.

“First of all, they don’t know who our quarterback is,” he said. “Our quarterback is not Sal Aunese, he’s dead. Our quarterback is Darian Hagan. They’re in trouble right there because they’re going to think we only have 10 guys on the field.”

Aunese died earlier this fall after a bout with stomach cancer.

It clearly wasn’t Holtz’s finest moment. Nor have these been his finest 24 hours.

“I have a lot more problems today than I did yesterday,” he said later.

No one disagreed.