Dooley Plans to Retire From Coaching, Several Georgia Newspapers Report

Vince Dooley, Georgia football coach and athletic director, is expected to announce his retirement from coaching today, according to several newspaper reports.

There was no official confirmation, although one member of the University of Georgia Athletic Board said that Dooley, 56, who has coached the Bulldogs for 25 years and won 200 games as well as one national championship, would announce “what his future holds tomorrow.” Dooley, the newspapers reported, would remain at Georgia as athletic director.

The Athens Daily News, in today’s editions, reported that Dooley was expected to announce his plans to his football players at a meeting today, as the Bulldogs reconvene to begin preparation for their Gator Bowl game against Michigan State at Jacksonville, Fla.

Dooley intends to coach the Bulldogs in the New Year’s Day game, the newspaper said.

The newspaper also said Dooley will hold a news conference later to make his announcement public. But Georgia spokesman Claude Felton said that, as of Tuesday night, a news conference had not been scheduled.

Both the Athens newspaper and the Marietta Daily Journal quoted unidentified sources in stories in today’s editions as saying George Haffner, Georgia’s offensive coordinator, will be named interim coach.

The Atlanta Constitution reported that a search committee to find a permanent replacement for Dooley was named Tuesday by University President Charles Knapp. The newspaper said Georgia Southern football coach Erk Russell, a former offensive coordinator at Georgia, headed the list of potential replacements.

Bob Stull, Texas-El Paso coach, said he has been offered the coaching job at Missouri but has not accepted the position yet.

“We still have things to work out,” he said. “It’s nothing official.”

A news conference was scheduled for this morning at the Columbia, Mo., campus.