EL PASO, Texas -- Less than a day after losing its coach, UTEP tried to contact former Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson about possibly replacing Jason Rabedeaux.

UTEP officials would not discuss whether Richardson was interested in coaching his alma mater. They confirmed Tuesday that they've left multiple messages for Richardson but have not heard back from him.

Richardson, who played for Hall of Fame coach Don Haskins, has vowed to coach again but only in the right situation. He has always had a soft spot in his heart for UTEP. Attempts to reach Richardson Monday night and Tuesday were not successful.

Throughout the summer, there was chatter about Richardson ultimately becoming the next UTEP coach. Richardson moved his summer golf tournament to his native El Paso after he was pushed out at Arkansas last season.

Former UTEP assistant Tim Floyd was also contacted by the university, but he told ESPN.com on Tuesday that he wasn't interested in the job. Floyd, who was fired by the Chicago Bulls last season, has told close friends in college basketball that he would like another shot in the NBA.

UCLA assistant Jim Saia could be a candidate as well.

Richardson's 17-year run at Arkansas came to a tumultuous end in March after his criticism of reporters and fans and complaints that he was treated differently at the school because he is black. After days of meetings with university officials that included talks of buyouts, retirement and his resignation, Arkansas ultimately bought out the last six years of Richardson's seven-year, $1.03 million-per-year contract -- using a clause in Richardson's deal that allowed the university to pay Richardson $500,000 a year.

Richardson won the 1994 NCAA title and lost the championship game to UCLA in 1995. In 22 years as a head coach, including five years at Tulsa, Richardson has a 508-206 record.

As for Rabedeaux, 37, he said Monday that he had lost the motivation to coach and resigned Monday. Rabedeaux succeeded Haskins in 1999 and led the Miners to a 46-46 record in three seasons.

"I have things in my life that I need to prioritize," Rabedeaux said at a hastily called news conference Monday evening. "What defense we're in and how many points we score and when the next booster function is are not at the top of my list."

UTEP went 23-9 in 2000-01, their best record in nine years, but slipped to 10-22 last season.

The decision comes just more than a month before the start of the season, but Rabedeaux said it was in the best interest of UTEP, himself and his family. He declined to elaborate on specific reasons.

"I wanted to see where my heart was, what my drive was, what my focus was, and it wasn't what it needs to be," he said.

"This is not a decision that was forced on me," he added. "This is not a fired kind of thing."

Rabedeaux's decision to resign Monday didn't come as a shock to his close friends and former colleagues. They had been in contact with him throughout the past month, helping him get through the deep personal issues that he was wrestling with before he made the decision to resign.

"We saw this coming for a while," Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson said of his former assistant. "He had to make a decision that was best for him. There are a lot more important things than college basketball and the most important is family. UTEP was a great opportunity for him but he had to make a decision and not look back. He had other issues. This is not a basketball thing. It's not about this season."

Rabedeaux would have been under intense heat, though, if he hadn't made a run at the top of the WAC this season. This was year four in his contract and the Miners' fans were getting impatient. Last November, Rabedeaux received a two-year contract extension running through 2007.

UTEP athletics director Bob Stull said Rabedeaux informed him of his decision Monday morning. Stull said he gave Rabedeaux a chance to reconsider. He added that he hadn't had time to choose an interim coach but would not rule out asking Haskins to come back temporarily.

"All three would probably be somewhat of a long shot," Stull said.

Bringing back Haskins would be tough considering that he has battled a number of health issues since Rabedeaux replaced him. Taking over for Haskins was a no-win situation for Rabedeaux considering that he was replacing a legend.

The interim job, at least overnight, goes to relatively inexperienced assistants Junsie Cotten and Bobby Champagne. Former assistant and longtime coach Silvey Dominguez would have been the likely replacement but he bolted to Utah in the offseason.

UTEP opens its regular season Nov. 23 against New Mexico Highlands, with the first exhibition is Nov. 9.

The UTEP job is considered one of the toughest in the WAC because there is no recruiting base. Haskins was successful keeping the program atop the league in the 1980s with a pipeline to Chicago that included Tim Hardaway. But that eventually dried up and the Miners struggled to recruit similar type of athletes or for that matter talent.

Rabedeaux was hired over Saia and then former Oklahoma assistant Ray Lopes, who is now the head coach at Fresno State.

Stull and Rabedeaux said the team has a solid crew of assistants and they don't believe any players will leave because of the change.

Stull said he informed Haskins of the coaching change Monday afternoon. Neither Haskins nor Richardson immediately returned telephone messages left at their homes by The Associated Press.

Rabedeaux was an aide to Sampson for 10 years. He worked on Sampson's staff at Washington State from 1989-94, then followed Sampson to Norman, Okla.

Information from ESPN.com senior writer Andy Katz and The Associated Press was used in this report.