"He talked about how important it is having something to do every day, waking up and having a job and a purpose in life," Coker said Wednesday. "I feel a lot like George Foreman. I never looked at coaching as a job, but I miss it because it was never boring. You wear a lot of different hats every day."

Coker, who guided Miami to the 2001 BCS national championship and was fired five years later, might think about keeping his hat size handy.

Coker confirmed he was among six of the seven finalists who interviewed for the UTSA Football job Tuesday and Wednesday in Dallas.

Athletic director Lynn Hickey and her staff also met with Mary Hardin-Baylor coach Pete Fredenburg, Duke defensive coordinator Mike MacIntyre, Tulsa associate head coach/co-defensive coordinator Paul Randolph and Texas A&M quarterback coach Tom Rossley.

Coker, who also led Miami to the BCS title game after the 2002 season, sounded like a coach who has given considerable thought to resuming his career at UTSA.

"I did talk to them in Dallas on Tuesday, and I'm very interested in the job," Coker said. "I haven't been to San Antonio and seen the campus, so I'm not fully committed yet. But I am very excited about having the opportunity to coach at UTSA and leaving a legacy."

The identity of the sixth finalist interviewed in Dallas could not be confirmed.

Longtime NFL assistant coach Bill Bradley, who lives in Spring Branch, said Hickey has told him he would be interviewed in San Antonio later this week or early next week.

Hickey declined to comment Wednesday on the coaching search.

Coker, 60, said Hickey did not tell him whether he would be invited to the UTSA campus for another interview. But given Coker's stature and experience, that could be a foregone conclusion.

"Lynn told me they probably would bring in one or two, or maybe three people to San Antonio," Coker said. "I think it went very well Tuesday, but the ball is in their court."

MacIntyre, a former Dallas Cowboys assistant coach, is highly regarded by UTSA officials, a source at UTSA said, and there is rising speculation he also could come to San Antonio for another interview.

MacIntyre, who turns 44 on March 14, was on Bill Parcells' staff with the Cowboys for four seasons (2003-06). He was an assistant with the New York Jets for one season before moving to Duke last year.

Randolph, 42, is the only African American among the seven finalists. Defensive coordinator at Rice in 2006, he also has coached at Alabama, West Virginia, Toledo, Illinois State, Valdosta State and Tennessee-Martin.

Rossley, 62, has been an assistant coach at A&M for one season. A former assistant with the USFL San Antonio Gunslingers, Rossley was head coach at SMU for six seasons in the 1990s.

Hickey and UTSA president Ricardo Romo have said they want to hire a coach by March 1. The Roadrunners kick off their first season in 2011 as an independent in the Football Championship Subdivision, formerly Division I-AA.

Coker, who was 60-15 in six seasons at Miami, said money should not be a sticking point if he is offered the job.

"The salary is no problem with me," he said.

Coker lives in Fort Myers, Fla., and has been a college Football analyst for ESPN the past two seasons. He was a finalist two years ago for the Rice coaching job that went to MacArthur graduate David Bailiff.

Coker said he would relish the challenge of leading a start-up program.

"If I didn't think UTSA could win, I wouldn't want the job," Coker said. "I know it would be difficult at the beginning, but eventually you get it going and get better each year. We would want to be San Antonio's team, and I'd do my best to put a product on the field the people can embrace."