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Lou Holtz, Phil Knight to serve as guest coaches for Ohio State spring game

Lou Holtz hired Urban Meyer as an assistant at Notre Dame in 1996. (AP Photo/South Bend Tribune, Robert Franklin, Pool)
Lou Holtz hired Urban Meyer as an assistant at Notre Dame in 1996. (AP Photo/South Bend Tribune, Robert Franklin, Pool)

Ohio State will have a few special guests for its spring game.

The program announced Tuesday that two close friends of Urban Meyer, Lou Holtz and Phil Knight, will serve as guest coaches for the annual Scarlet and Gray Game.

“I am very close to each of these individuals and I have enjoyed their friendship over many years,” Meyer said, “but even more I respect the impact they have had on Ohio State and college football. I am looking forward to having Coach Holtz and Phil Knight on our campus as guest coaches, and I am very appreciative they want to take part in and support our spring game.”

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Holtz won 249 games as a collegiate head coach — beginning at William & Mary in 1969 and ending at South Carolina in 2004. In between, he served as head coach at NC State, Arkansas, Minnesota and Notre Dame. He won a national title with the Fighting Irish in 1988 and hired Meyer to coach the team’s wide receivers in 1996. From there, Meyer launched his head coaching career at Bowling Green before wildly successful stops at Utah, Florida and now with the Buckeyes.

With the invitation sent to Holtz, we’re assuming Meyer had no hard feelings for Holtz’s appearance at Michigan’s signing day extravaganza last year, where Holtz dabbed with Jim Harbaugh.

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Knight is the co-founder and chairman emeritus of Nike, which has a long-standing relationship with Ohio State athletics. Knight is an Oregon alum who has long been a visible supporter of the Ducks, but he made a well-publicized appearance in the winning Ohio State locker room after the Buckeyes knocked off Michigan in double overtime in November.

This year’s Scarlet and Gray Game kicks off at 12:30 p.m. on April 15 at Ohio Stadium.

For more Ohio State news, visit BuckeyeGrove.com.

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Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!