Donahue Again on Coaching Fence

Former UCLA coach Terry Donahue could be named coach of the Dallas Cowboys today, but the decision rests as much with Donahue as it does with Cowboy owner Jerry Jones.

Although the job appears to be within Donahue’s grasp, he remains uncertain if he’ll accept it. That uncertainty has grown in the last 24 hours.

Donahue is considering all the negatives as well as positives as he ponders whether he wants to turn in his CBS microphone for a Cowboy headset and leap into perhaps the hottest coaching seat in the NFL.

Donahue knows that he will be working for an owner:

* who believes he is fully capable of coaching the team himself.

* who fired long-time coach Tom Landry upon assuming control of the team in 1989.

* who parted company with coach Jimmy Johnson because of a clash of egos.

* who seems determined to play an even bigger role in the team’s fortunes on the field after last season’s collapse, which resulted in a failure to qualify for the postseason and the resignation of coach Barry Switzer on Jan. 9.

* who, according to a report from the Dallas area, doesn’t even want his coaching staff to take an active role in the draft.

* who is already making decisions on his assistant coaches even though there is no coach in place.

But there are also pluses, such as:

* the chance to gain instant credibility as an NFL coach if he can be successful at the helm of America’s Team until both on-the-field and off-the-field difficulties created chaos.

* the chance to take over a team that has won three Super Bowls in the last six years.

* the chance to sign a rich three- to five-year contract.

* the chance to work with a quarterback with whom he has a good relationship. That would give Donahue a big advantage over Switzer, who clashed with Troy Aikman as the Cowboys’ struggles increased. Aikman played at UCLA under Donahue.

Donahue has been on the NFL’s doorstep before without walking in.

A decade ago, he decided to leave UCLA to coach the Atlanta Falcons, slept on his decision and then changed his mind in the morning.

He had an opportunity to coach the Los Angeles Rams, but backed off when the club moved to St. Louis.

Instead, Donahue left his Bruin coaching job after 20 years, retiring as the winningest coach in Pacific 10 history at the end of the 1995 season, and went to work as a college football analyst for CBS.

But he has made no secret of a desire to return to the sidelines. He considered the Notre Dame job when Lou Holtz left two years ago, but Donahue ultimately turned down a chance to interview for the job.

Donahue was interested in the vacant San Diego Charger head coaching job when Bobby Ross left after the 1996 season because he would have been able to stay close to his Orange County home. But the Chargers had settled on Kevin Gilbride.

There is also Donahue’s broadcasting career to consider.

Now that CBS has reacquired rights to NFL games, Donahue, if he can’t work things out with the Cowboys, would like to be an analyst on the pro games, rather than college.

His broadcast agent, Bob Rosen, flew to Monterey last Wednesday to meet with Sean McManus, CBS Sports president, and Tony Pettitti, senior vice president of business affairs and programming, at Pebble Beach.

Rosen said they are very high on Donahue as a broadcaster, but their view is that he is more associated with the college game and they would like to leave him on the college package.

The problem with that is CBS’ lack of a strong schedule. The network has only two conferences, the Big East and the Southeastern, and has lost the Fiesta and Orange bowls to ABC’s super alliance. Also, CBS has lost the Cotton Bowl to Fox.

If Donahue were to be taken off college football, CBS executives are fearful there might be the perception among the college community as well as the public in general that CBS is downgrading its college package.

Still, Rosen made it clear that Donahue wants to be part of the NFL package.

“What I told them was, if a Jerry Jones thinks enough of Terry’s knowledge of the NFL to consider hiring him as a coach, others in television should think that way too,” Rosen said.

Donahue had an interview Monday with Jones in Dallas. There have been two other meetings between the two in Dallas as well as one in San Diego on the day after Super Bowl XXXII. The two also have spoken numerous times on the phone.

Whatever happens will happen very soon.

“Jerry is sticking by his mid-week timetable,” Cowboy spokesman Brett Daniels said. “[Today] is a possibility for an announcement.”

If Donahue does not become the coach, Jones is expected to name Green Bay Packer offensive coordinator Sherm Lewis. Former San Francisco 49ers coach George Seifert, once believed to be the front runner, now seems to be a longshot.

Jones said he wants someone who can supply a jolt: “I’m looking for something that, for the players and the fans, would give you that spark that would have you up on your seat.”

If Donahue gets the job, he’ll have a decimated coaching staff.

Cowboy running backs coach Joe Brodsky said Monday he is leaving after nine seasons to take a similar position with the Chicago Bears.

Brodsky’s departure follows that of offensive coordinator Ernie Zampese, who has left to join the New England Patriots.

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The Associated Press contributed to this story.