Ex-49ers RB Lawrence Phillips has expressed an interest in joining the XFL Outlaws.(AP)

Phillips' record must be reviewed by the XFL before Ackles can consider whether to add him to the team.

"He called me two months ago when I first came here, and he said he had an interest," Ackles said. "If he's eligible, we'll discuss it."

Vince McMahon, the CEO of the World Wrestling Federation, which runs the XFL, said last summer that character of the league's players would be an issue and has set a code of ethics.

"There will be no convicted felons in the XFL," McMahon said.

Phillips' first legal problem was during the 1995 season at Nebraska.

He was an early favorite for the Heisman Trophy before being suspended from the team. He attacked his former girlfriend and was convicted of misdemeanor assault and trespassing, for which he got one year's probation.

Nebraska coach Tom Osborne eventually reinstated Phillips, who led the Cornhuskers to a Fiesta Bowl victory over Florida for the national championship. Osborne wrote letters to all NFL teams endorsing Phillips. But, again, Phillips found trouble.

The St. Louis Rams drafted him in the first round but he was arrested three times during his 19 months with the club and was released.

Phillips resurfaced with the Miami Dolphins, but he was released four weeks later after he allegedly struck a woman who refused to dance with him at a nightclub.

Ackles was in the Dolphins' front office at the time.

"The short period of time we had him there, he seemed like a good guy," Ackles said. "I didn't have as much contact with him as the coaches. Obviously, he's had some problems."

Phillips resurfaced in 1999 in NFL Europe, where he rushed for more than 1,000 yards in eight games for the Barcelona Dragons.

That performance earned him yet another chance, as he was signed to a two-year contract by the San Francisco 49ers. He didn't survive the season, and now he's hoping for one more opportunity.

If he were approved by the league, the Outlaws would have the first option of signing him to their 70-man roster. Las Vegas owns territorial rights to college players from Nebraska, UNLV and Brigham Young.

The Outlaws can protect up to 11 players from those schools by Sunday, before the XFL Draft on Oct. 28-29.

The eight-team league opens regular-season play Feb. 3 when the Outlaws play host to the New York-New Jersey Hitmen.