Late Tuesday night, San Diego announced head coach Dale Lindsey's retirement.
On Wednesday morning, the San Diego Union-Tribune reached Lindsey for comment and, boy, did he give them one.
"I did not (bleeping) retire," Lindsey told the paper. "I was shown the door and would like to coach. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it."
Asked twice if San Diego in fact fired Lindsey, AD Bill McGillis declined to state definitively one way or the other.
"He is absolutely a fantastic head coach. He has demonstrated great integrity, values that match the University of San Diego, a commitment to education and mentoring his players in a way that will benefit them for the rest of their lives," he said. "And we look forward in the future to honoring him and celebrating a remarkable legacy."
Lindsey spent 10 seasons as USD's head coach, in the process setting the school record with 80 victories. He led the Toreros to at least a share of eight Pioneer Football League titles, including a 41-game conference win streak from 2015-20. San Diego reached the FCS playoffs five times in his 10 seasons, including four straight from 2016-19. The 2016 and 2018 teams won FCS playoff games and finished the season in the FCS top 25.
And so, after a 5-5 season, it seems San Diego decided to move in a different direction and attempted to frame the decision in the best light possible. It should be noted that the press release stated Lindsey would retire "from coaching at the University of San Diego."
Except the 80-year-old coach, beloved by his players for his blunt communication style, made it clear he has no plans to retire from coaching outside the University of San Diego.
"I know chronologically how old I am. But I don’t function like an 80-year-old man. If you just sit at home, you become a vegetable — and vegetables die sooner or later. I’ve seen too many coaches work their ass off for 40 years, think they’re going to go off to some golden parachute retirement. Then they’re dead in six months," Lindsey said. "I don’t want to be one (of those), nor do I intend to be one."