Navy Job Could Go to Stallings

Gene Stallings, former coach of the Phoenix Cardinals, has been interviewed for the vacant head coaching job at Navy, the Phoenix Gazette reported.

The newspaper said Stallings, who owns a ranch in Paris, Tex., was interviewed in Dallas by Jack Lengyel, Navy athletic director.

Stallings told the Annapolis Capital: “If I were going to go back to the college level, Navy would be one of the few places I would consider.”

Stallings reportedly was recommended to Lengyel by former Navy quarterback Roger Staubach, who played for the Dallas Cowboys when Stallings was an assistant coach.

Stallings, 54, was fired by Phoenix on Nov. 20 after announcing that he would not seek to have his contract renewed after this season. He was in his fourth season with the Cardinals and had a 23-34-1 record.

The Navy job became available when Elliott Uzelac was fired Dec. 12 with one year left on his four-year contract.

Navy reportedly has interviewed only five for the job so far--Stallings, Marshall’s George Chaump, The Citadel’s Charlie Taafe, Virginia assistant Tom O’Brien and William & Mary’s Jimmye Laycock.