Neuheisel insists he won't coach Irish

SAN DIEGO -- Rick Neuheisel insisted Sunday he is not a candidate to become the football coach at Notre Dame, adding, "I'm happy as I can be at Washington."

He said he is not negotiating with Notre Dame, which is looking for a new coach after George O'Leary abruptly resigned. But Neuheisel, whose team plays Texas in Friday's Holiday Bowl, refused to say whether Notre Dame had contacted him.

"It's not important," he said. "What's important is that I'm staying at Washington."

ESPN.com reported that Neuheisel has emerged as a leading candidate to become the next coach at Notre Dame and the school was working on a package that could be worth as much as $2.5 million annually. The report, citing unidentified sources, said a contract offer could be presented to Neuheisel as early as next week.

"I don't know where these ideas get conjured up in the minds of those who know things that obviously I don't know," Neuheisel said. "But there is no truth to any of that.

"I have said it and I'll say it again: While Notre Dame is a great university and certainly would be a very prestigious job for whoever would take it, it's not the job that I'm looking for. I'm happy as I can be at Washington; I think Washington is also a prestigious job. I'm fortunate to have it."

Neuheisel's father, Dick, said earlier Sunday: "My belief is he'll stay at Washington."

John Heisler, associate athletic director at Notre Dame, said the school would have no comment on any reports "until we're ready to name a new coach."

Bob Davie was fired by Notre Dame the day after the Irish finished 5-6, and a week later athletic director Kevin White hired O'Leary from Georgia Tech. But O'Leary resigned five days into the job for lying on his resume about his academic and athletic credentials.

Irish say little

For the past week, the Irish have said little about White's new search. Neuheisel, along with NFL coaches Mike Shanahan, Steve Mariucci and Jon Gruden became possible contenders again. All have said they weren't interested.

South Carolina coach Lou Holtz said Wednesday he's not a candidate to return to Notre Dame and recommended his son instead.

Neuheisel runs a pro-style attack capable of scoring lots of points, and has a reputation for developing quarterbacks. He has been at Washington three years after spending the previous four at Colorado. He angered Colorado fans when he left.

"There's nothing easy about making a move from one place to another," he said Sunday. "But it was the right move, and three years into it I'm still excited about it and hope to stay at Washington for the foreseeable future."

Neuheisel is 59-23 as a head coach, 25-9 at Washington. The Huskies were 8-3 this season.