TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Wesley Britt said there was a "great probability" Alabama would have a head coach by the weekend.

Justin Smiley said it was "guaranteed."

Crimson Tide players left a meeting with University President Robert Witt and athletic director Mal Moore upbeat that they would have a new coach in the next couple of days -- and expecting it to be either Mike Shula, Sylvester Croom or Richard Williamson.

"They said we'd know something by Saturday -- definitely," Smiley said.

For the second straight day, Witt and Moore didn't meet with any candidates Wednesday. University spokesman Larry White said no offer has been made.

The three former Alabama players, all current NFL assistants, are the only candidates known to have interviewed for the job Mike Price lost after a trip to a topless bar in Florida became a public embarrassment.

The three -- Shula of the Miami Dolphins, Croom of the Green Bay Packers and Williamson of the Carolina Panthers -- all have gotten plugs for the Alabama job from their head coaches.

But Shula was viewed in some quarters as the favorite.

The Birmingham News said Alabama was in "serious negotiations" with Shula, 37, who played quarterback for the Tide and is the son of NFL coaching great Don Shula. White, however, denied that any negotiations are under way.

Asked about the search after the meeting, Witt would only say, "We're optimistic we'll be able to make a decision relatively soon."

It's not clear if any more interviews are planned.

"All three coaches that they mentioned are great coaches," Britt said. "They have great credentials."

"It sounds like they've pretty much got it narrowed down," Smiley said. "They've just got to work out the legal factors, because they said, 'Him.' "

Meanwhile, Price insisted in an interview with The Birmingham News that he was "too drunk to really know" what happened during a wild night in Pensacola, Fla., on April 16 that led to his firing by Witt on Saturday. He denied a Sports Illustrated report that he had sex with two women in a Pensacola, Fla., hotel room and had earlier propositioned female students in Tuscaloosa or bought alcohol for students in bars.

Aaron Price, one of Price's sons, answered the door at the coach's house Wednesday and said they would have no comment at this time. A "for sale" sign was out front.

Smiley was glad the Tide would likely have an Alabama alum running the program after Price lasted less than five months and Dennis Franchione left for Texas A&M after two seasons.

"I like the idea of somebody who's been here and done that and bled crimson," Smiley said. "Somebody who's got some love for this university that these last two guys really haven't had when you come down to it."

Panthers coach John Fox said the Alabama job is the only one that could lure Williamson from Charlotte, and that's what he told Moore.

"I told Mal, 'I really do believe this is the only job in the universe he'd be interested in,' " Fox said Wednesday. "And I told him I think Richard would be the perfect coach for Alabama.

"He knows and loves the school and has the leadership experience to deal with their situation."

Panthers coach Mike Sherman and Miami's Dave Wannstedt had already lobbied for their own assistants.

Price was fired for what Witt said was inappropriate behavior in connection with Price's visit to a topless bar in Pensacola on April 16 and a woman's $1,000 room service order billed to his hotel room the next morning. Witt also said Price had been warned about his public conduct earlier, a claim Price's attorney, Steve Heninger, disputed in the News interview.

A university policy giving fired employees 10 days to file a grievance won't delay the hiring process, university spokeswoman Janet Griffith said.

"We are aware of the policy, but it also does not say a position can't be filled until a grievance is resolved," she said.

Griffith said Price has not filed a grievance.