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Cowher: 'Not interested in N.C. State' Troubled Steelers coach confirms talks with alma mater
Posted: Tuesday December 21, 1999 04:41 PM
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher has Carolina on his mind -- Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers, that is, and not alma mater North Carolina State. Cowher confirmed Monday that he talked twice to North Carolina State athletic director Les Robinson about the Wolfpack's coaching vacancy. He also seemed to leave open the possibility he might be interested. But 15 minutes after ending the session, and after talking to wife Kaye, Cowher met informally with reporters and emphasized he had no intention of seeking another job, either in college football or the NFL. With the Steelers (5-9) stuck in a six-game losing streak and out of the playoffs, there has been considerable speculation about Cowher's future despite his $6 million, three-year contract extension that begins next year. But, visibly weary of the talk and rumors he and his wife are having marital problems, Cowher said he won't leave unless the Steelers ask him to. "I'm not interested in North Carolina State," he said. "I'm a little tired of having to answer everything that's being said about me and about where I'm going to coach next year. My intentions are of being right here. "It has gotten old to keep answering the Bill Cowher question." Cowher's off-field life and future have become such a hot topic in Pittsburgh, the Steelers' on-field problems have almost become a secondary issue. Two weeks ago, Cowher said his wife and three children have been subjected to disparaging, insensitive remarks that forced him to "bite my tongue." Later, Cowher said he and his wife have a solid marriage that has been made stronger by the troubling season they have shared. "She's a very strong person," Cowher said. Cowher said he did not initially dispel the N. C. State rumor during his televised news conference Monday because it had so little validity, he didn't consider it necessary. Only after realizing that his remarks might be misinterpreted and might prove distracting did he elaborate on them. "I'm having a hard time with all the things said over the last five weeks about me and all the things associated with me," he said. "It gets old. I'm tired of it and I don't want to talk about it anymore. And I'm not going to talk about it any more." According to Cowher, Robinson asked him weeks ago if he had any interest in coaching at N.C. State. Told no, Robinson called again a few days later, but only to identify other possible candidates. Cowher joked that the only contacts he has with N.C. State boosters are requests for larger donations to the scholarship fund. "The focus has been too much on me," he said. "I'm tired of having to answer questions that have no validity. It does get frustrating having to keep talking about Bill Cowher, and I just wanted to set the record straight." Cowher all but said that if the Steelers change coaches next year, it will be because owner Dan Rooney chooses to do so, not because he leaves. "Talk to Mr. Rooney, he's the one who controls it," Cowher said. "My intention is on being here." The Steelers made the playoffs in each of Cowher's first six seasons, reaching the AFC championship game three times and the Super Bowl once. But they are 12-16 over the last two seasons and have lost 14 of their last 19. Unless they beat Carolina on Sunday and Tennessee on Jan. 2, they will finish with their worst record since they were 5-11 in 1988. Regardless, Cowher said the Steelers' decline from Super Bowl contenders two years ago to NFL has only heightened his resolve to win again. "My intention is to stay right here and get this turned around," he said. "It really is. I plan on being here. The players read in the papers about me possibly leaving, now they can read in the papers about me staying."
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