Miami Football Coach Manny Diaz mostly A’s as home run hire
When Mark Richt suddenly retired on December 30 Miami Athletic Director Blake James had one name in mind to replace him. James bringing Manny Diaz back as the Miami Football Coach was a huge coup.
Diaz had been hired as the Head Football Coach at Temple Just 12 days before Richt announced his retirement as the Head Coach of the Miami football program. Diaz was criticized roundly by many in the Temple football community and some national football writers for leaving the Owls so soon. He was a home run for the Hurricanes.
Diaz is Miami. He grew up in South Florida and his father, Manny Senior is a former Mayor of Miami-Dade. James should be lauded for identifying his candidate and making it happen quickly. The turnaround from Richt’s announcement he was retiring and the press release announcing Diaz was replacing Richt was about 11 hours.
It’s clear James had a contingency plan in place for the possibility of Richt retiring. Diaz knows the program, understands the South Florida culture and what it takes to succeed at Miami. Richt is an alumnus of Boca Raton high school and Miami. Diaz’s personality is more suited to being the Head Coach of the U.
Diaz is down to earth and accommodating and still confident and in your face. He has frequently said he wants a fast and violent defense. Diaz was able to do that as the Hurricanes Defensive Coordinator. As the Head Coach Diaz and new Miami Offensive Coordinator Dan Enos will try to create an offense to match the style of the defense.
When Miami was winning in the eighties, nineties and early 2000s they were in your face, aggressive and unapologetic about it. Diaz will try to return Miami not just to the glory years but to the swagger that the fans and media expect. CBSSports.Com gave the Hurricanes an A for hiring Diaz.
"“This is about as good a result that could be expected after the shocking retirement of Mark Richt on Dec. 30. Diaz left Temple after only 18 days to come back home.It’s hard to blame him for leaving Temple. Born in Miami, Diaz’s dad was mayor of the city. For the last three seasons, he was Richt’s defensive coordinator. Diaz has hit the ground sprinting being aggressive in the transfer portal and calling all of it The New Miami.”"
The New Miami came out of Diaz’s desire to want all of his players to feel like they had transferred to a new school. The TNM hashtag has become synonymous with the beginning of the Diaz era with the Hurricanes as much as mining the transfer portal has.
SB Nation’s Jason Kirk who does the Bowl Projections for them each week did the update and grades on the FB Coaches changes. Kirk praised Diaz for Miami’s defense and not so subtly criticized the rest of the Hurricanes play.
"“Manny Diaz hiring grade: A. Well, as I wrote about his hire at Temple days earlier: “He was responsible for the only thing the Canes were good at, has been a smart and elite defensive coordinator for years, and should be able to bring some Florida athletes to Philly.” All that, minus the Philly part.”"
USAToday’s Paul Myerberg gave higher grades to experienced Head Coaches. Diaz being in his first position leading a program was a knock on him. West Virginia’s Neal Brown took the job to lead the Mountaineers after previously leading the football program at Troy. This will be his first time ever working in a Power Five program.
"“Diaz is a great fit at Miami in a cultural sense, as a guy who knows the area, has built-in name recognition and already has the respect of the locker room after his strong stint at defensive coordinator.He’s also made a great hire at offensive coordinator in former Alabama assistant Dan Enos. The lack of experience is an understandable concern, though it clearly didn’t weigh heavily on Miami’s thought process.”"
Diaz has eight years of experience as a Defensive Coordinator in a Power Five program, four years of experience as a Graduate Assistant at Florida State and North Carolina State and four years as a Position Coach. The included one year as the Special Teams Coordinator in Raleigh. Diaz knows what it takes for a Power Five Program to succeed.
It is unfair to knock him for lack of experience as a Head Coach and not question Brown’s inexperience coaching at a Power Five School. As Kirk said, “Diaz was responsible for the only thing that the Canes were good at.”
Next. Miami fanbase and media energized by Manny Diaz. dark
Diaz was more than the Defensive Coordinator. He was basically the Head Coach of the Defense. Richt gave Diaz complete control over how he wanted to run the defense. Now Diaz gets the chance to prove he can create the same atmosphere throughout a team as he did with the Miami defense the last three seasons.