Penn State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz has officially been hired as head coach at Duke, the university announced on Thursday night. He is the 23rd head coach in Blue Devil football’s history.
“As our process unfolded, it became abundantly clear that Manny Diaz is the right fit for Duke University and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome Manny, Stephanie, and their family into the Duke community,” Duke director of athletics Nina King said in a press release. “Manny’s previous experiences have prepared him for this opportunity, and he is, quite simply, an outstanding football coach who will capitalize on the positive momentum of this program. An elite communicator and collaborator, Manny possesses the dynamic ability to cultivate impactful relationships with internal and external constituents surrounding a successful football program. As Duke’s head football coach, I am confident that Manny will lead the young men in our program to reach and surpass their aspirations of achievement both on and off the field.”
“We are grateful and humbled for this opportunity and could not be more excited to be the head football coach at Duke University,” Diaz added. “I’d like to give a special thanks to Dr. Price and Nina for their trust in me and our family as well as a true commitment to this program. Duke University is an elite institution in every facet, and we are excited to be a part of it. I’m beyond excited to get to work.”
Penn State has not yet commented on the move.
Original Story:
Penn State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz is finalizing contract details Duke’s new head coach, Sports Illustrated reported on Thursday morning. The news comes a few days after it was reported that Diaz was among a handful of finalists for the job. He would would replace former Blue Devils’ head coach Mike Elko, who recently took over at Texas A&M in the same role.
This would be Diaz’s second stint as a head coach, having led Miami from 2018 to 2021. After being fired as the Hurricanes’ head coach, he was quickly hired at Penn State as the Nittany Lions’ defensive coordinator and piloted a Penn State defense that was among the best in the nation each of the two years that he was at the helm. He had never denied his interest in becoming a head coach again sometime soon, but what sort of job he was looking for, and when that opportunity might arise, were both unknowns.
“…We’d like to create a situation here for Manny and his family that he wants to be here until he has an opportunity to get a really good head coaching job that’s going to allow him to flourish,” Penn State head coach James Franklin said prior to the Nittany Lions’ regular season finale, in which Diaz’s unit held Michigan State to 53 total yards in a shutout. “I think Brent [Pry] handled it probably as well as any. He had a great job, turned down a bunch of jobs waiting for the right one.”
Diaz’s departure marks the second coordinator hire Franklin will need to make this offseason. Franklin has already hired a new offensive coordinator in Andy Kotelnicki from Kansas to replace Mike Yurcich, who was fired following the Nittany Lions’ loss to Michigan in November. It remains to be seen if Franklin will opt for a nationwide search to replace Diaz or if he simply promotes co-defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter to the role.
It also remains to be seen who, if anyone, Diaz might bring with him from Penn State to Durham.
