Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins remained in stable condition on Tuesday but was still in the cardiac intensive care unit at Beaver Medical Center in suburban Pittsburgh after suffering a heart attack Saturday morning, Cincinnati sports information director Tom Hathaway said.

Huggins is expected to be in the hospital for a few more days before he is allowed to be transported back to Cincinnati. Hathaway said doctors had Huggins up and moving around for a second day on Monday. He said Huggins continues to be alert and talking and that the coach also called the office late Monday.

"Everything is being done in small steps as to make sure there are no serious episodes,'' Hathaway said.

Huggins, 49, had a heart procedure to implant a metal mesh stent to keep open a clogged artery that was 90 percent blocked. He did not have open heart surgery.

Hathaway said it was premature to say if associate head coach Dan Peters, a longtime assistant of Huggins' and a former head coach at Youngstown State, would be named interim coach.

However, practice starts on Oct. 12 and no one is expecting Huggins to be conducting practice the first day. Peters would be the logical choice to be named interim coach since he has more experience than either Andy Kennedy or Keith LeGree.

He will need at least a month to recover, but it might take much longer if his heart sustained permanent damage, said Dr. Lynne Wagoner, director of cardiac services at University Hospital in Cincinnati.

"In many cases, it can be completely treated,'' Wagoner told the Associated Press. "I don't think this is all bad news.''

Huggins had the heart attack at the Pittsburgh airport on Saturday. He was there to catch a flight to Milwaukee for a coaching clinic.

"It came on quick. He was sweating profusely. It was very painful,'' Cincinnati athletic director Bob Goin said. "Timing was of the essence. Everybody snapped to it. I don't think there was time to spare.''

Memphis coach John Calipari visited Huggins Sunday at the hospital and said Huggins was responsive and knew the severity of what had happened to him. He said Huggins told him that the heart attack happened at the curb at the Pittsburgh airport. He was on the phone and dropped it when he fell. But the proximity to the street enabled him to be treated quickly.

He said Huggins told him that someone in the ambulance said to him, 'coach I won't let you die. I'm John Calipari's cousin.' Huggins apparently said in jest, even at that moment, 'oh no, then I have no chance.' Calipari said he wasn't sure who the person was and never got the name.

Calipairi said Huggins wants to coach this year but whether that is the smartest move is to be determined. He said he visited with him for 30-40 minutes told him to take care of himself.

"He knows how close he was,'' Calipari said. "It appears he'll be fine, but I'm not a doctor. I know he'll want to coach this season but if that's the smartest thing, well, I don't know.''

The Associated Press contributed to this report.