After his firing in Chicago, Stanky became the head baseball coach of the University of South Alabama in 1969, compiling a 490–195-2 (.714) record with five NCAA Baseball Tournament appearances over 14 seasons. He returned to the professional arena briefly in as manager of the Texas Rangers, succeeding Frank Lucchesi in midseason. He won his first game on June 22, but had second thoughts about leaving his adopted state of Alabama and resigned after a mere 18 hours on the job (one of the shortest managerial stints in MLB history) and went back to college coaching at South Alabama. According to Leo Durocher's autobiography, Stanky quit because he couldn't adapt to the attitudes of modern baseball players. His career MLB managerial mark was 467–435 (.518).