Cover Story
With two championship seasons already under their belts, Coach Skip Holtz and the Birmingham Stallions look to win an unprecedented third title for the Magic City in the United Football League. Coach Holtz and his wife Jennifer have made Birmingham their home during the football season, and say they feel comfortable and welcome in the city that prides itself as a football capital of the South. “We absolutely have fallen in love with the city of Birmingham,” Jennifer Holtz said.
Champions x Two. The Birmingham Stallions won the United States Football League (USFL) in 2022 and 2023, beating the Philadelphia Stars and Pittsburgh Maulers in the title games. For this season, the USFL combined with the XFL to create the UFL; the new football league is owned and operated by actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. The team continues to play its games at Protective Stadium in downtown Birmingham and is in the midst of the season, which began on March 30 and ends on June 1, although the team hopes to extend its season into the playoffs and try for a “three-peat” of championships.
Coach Holtz has been at the helm of the team for all of its seasons and says that it will be a challenge to win another title. The new makeup of the UFL has 8 teams, instead of the 16 in prior seasons, making the league and teams stronger. “The league is much more talented now because there’s a real dispersal of talent and teams are starting over again,” he said. “The league’s going to be much better, and we’re trying to be as good as we have in the past.” Also important will be the quality of play from its high-profile players. Former Alabama running back Bo Scarbrough recently announced his retirement from football, and last year’s league MVP quarterback Alex McGough moved onto the NFL after the season. Fans, though, will have new stars to look forward to– with potential quarterbacks being Stallions returner J’Mar Smith, former Ole Miss player Matt Corral, and former Nebraska player Adrian Martinez in the mix. Of the newcomers, Holtz said they are “two great people, two extremely talented quarterbacks, both their arms and their legs.” Holtz said that the play from all of the teams in the league will make it an exciting season for football in Birmingham. “I’ve truly been blessed throughout all of the seasons of this sport over the years, and I’ve loved everything about it. From practicing with college guys in the spring to sitting down with recruits in their homes. It’s all been a blessing,” he said. “And now to get to coach in this league, in the spring again. It’s exciting, and I think the fans have a lot to look forward to.”
According to Jennifer, she and her husband have become passionate both about the team and its future, but also with Birmingham in general. “Our previous visits were always football related, coming in and out to play UAB or at the Papa John’s Bowl in 2006,” she said. “But now I’ve had more time to explore and learn the city.” She mentioned the team’s experiences at Children’s Hospital as one exemplary example. “We had a player visit Children’s and the staff blew my socks off,” she said. “It truly was the most memorable day.” Holtz emphasized that they’ve come to appreciate Birmingham, especially the downtown area where they have lived during their two seasons with the Stallions. They’ve lived both by Railroad Park and by Pepper Place. “The city has great restaurants, great people, and we’ve had an awesome experience in Birmingham,” he said. “It’s so welcoming, and it’s really what I like to call a little big town. All the appeal of a big town with the welcome of a small town.” While in Birmingham, the Holtz family worships at St. Paul’s Catholic Church downtown; Jennifer said that the church has “one of the most beautiful cathedrals” she’s ever seen and that she especially appreciates the choir and the strong sense of family throughout the congregation. The move to Birmingham came after many stops along the way playing and then coaching football at all levels of the sport.
A Legacy of Winning. Holtz’s father is legendary football coach Lou Holtz, who won a national championship at Notre Dame in 1988 and went on to become a popular commentator for ESPN and other outlets. His father has influenced Coach Holtz all along his journey as a football coach. Born in Connecticut, Holtz grew up in college towns across the country where his father coached; he graduated from high school in Fayetteville while his father coached at the University of Arkansas and then joined his father at Notre Dame after enrolling for two years at nearby Holy Cross. At Notre Dame, he walked on and played on special teams. When he was finished playing, Holtz realized that he wanted to stay in the game–despite never making that plan for himself and hearing from his father to not follow in his footsteps. “I realized that I want to coach, I want to be a graduate assistant,” he recalled. “I went to Florida State, met my wife there, and it was the best time in my life. And I never wanted to do anything else from that moment on.” Holtz served as an assistant coach at South Carolina, Notre Dame, and Florida State and as the head coach at Connecticut, Louisiana Tech, South Florida, and East Carolina. Most recently he served as a special assistant to Northwestern University’s interim head coach last year after its coach was fired amid controversy.
“I love coaching football and am passionate about leading young men to achieve their very best,” Holtz said about his decision to help Northwestern during the UFL offseason. That dedication to the players he coaches has been just one of the many lessons and motivations that Holtz learned from his father. Chief among the lessons from his father was a sense of optimism; he always taught him that success in life is about the right attitude. “One of the greatest gifts he gave me is that I choose whether to be happy or sad. He taught me that you can’t get in a bad mood without your own permission,” he said. The most important lesson, however, that his father and his mother Beth gave him was a reliance on faith. When his father came to Notre Dame, it was a dream come true for a family rooted deeply in the Catholic faith. And when his mother Beth passed away in 2020 after a two-decades-long battle with throat cancer, Holtz described his mother as “an incredibly religious woman who was the glue to this family.” He adds that the faith he was taught by his parents has become the force that helps him through the challenges that come his way– whether on a football field or in life in general. “You can’t do it without a Higher Power, and a personal relationship with Jesus Christ,” he said. “It’s like the whole ‘footprints in the sand’ idea. He carries you through the difficult times.”
Watch the video below to hear more from Coach Holtz on how his faith impacts his personal and professional life.
Family Heritage. That focus on faith continued as the Holtzes started their own family. “I was raised in a loving and nurturing family environment, and our Catholic faith was the foundation of my morals and ethics,” Jennifer said. “My father in particular walked by faith and lived it daily. He taught me discipline and devotion to prayer.” As she and her husband raised their children Trey, Chad, and Hailey, they instilled the same values in their lives.
Today, the Holtz family spreads far and wide as their children serve in both sports-related and other careers. Their oldest son Trey played college football at the University of Texas and currently serves as an offensive analyst coaching quarterbacks at LSU. Middle son Chad played basketball at Notre Dame and today works for Andor Health in Orlando. Daughter Hailey graduated from Louisiana Tech and works as a football operations director for the Seattle Seahawks. Growing up in a football family taught their children important lessons. “Not only did our children grow up alongside other coaches’ kids, but they got to see young men handle adversity and success,” Jennifer said. “We felt the thrill of victory and suffered together through losses and injuries. It fosters great humility when everyone is vested in the outcome. And building lasting relationships beyond the football field has been a blessing for us all.”
As they look back on their experiences both in coaching and parenting, the Holtzes said that they can see God’s direction in the places they’ve been, the teams they’ve served, and the lessons they’ve learned. “It’s no understatement to say our faith has guided every decision we’ve made and through an unwavering trust in God’s grace we know to believe that His ways are greater than ours,” Jennifer said. And their advice to parents and families today? “Love big and pray constantly.”
-Cheryl Wray
