Wednesday, January 14, 1998

Jerry Jones says George Seifert still a candidate to coach Cowboys

By Jean-Jacques Taylor

The Dallas Morning News

(KRT)

IRVING, Texas - Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Tuesday that he still considers former San Francisco coach George Seifert a candidate to succeed Barry Switzer.

On Sunday, Switzer, who resigned as head coach last week, said Seifert would not be the Cowboys' next coach based on conversations he had with Jones and Larry Lacewell, the Cowboys' director of college and pro scouting.

"I'm the only one who knows if George Seifert is a candidate or not," Jones said. "All Barry has is an opinion.

"I would not rule Seifert out, from my perspective. I just would not rule him out."

Other candidates mentioned to become the fourth Cowboys coach are Denver offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, Philadelphia offensive coordinator Jon Gruden and LSU coach Gerry DiNardo. Former college coaches Lou Holtz and Terry Donohue also have been mentioned.

NFL rules, however, prohibit Jones from talking to Kubiak until after the Super Bowl because the Broncos are still playing.

Last week, Jones asked Switzer to call Denver coach Mike Shanahan for an assessment of Kubiak's potential as a head coach. Shanahan reportedly provided a strong recommendation.

Jones declined to comment on the selection process for a new coach.

"This is not the kind of process where I'm going to give regular progress reports," Jones said. "When we've made a decision, we'll let everyone know it's done."

(c) 1998, The Dallas Morning News.

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