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Miami hires Manny Diaz as defensive coordinator
Miami coach Mark Richt is assembling quite the staff in south Florida.
The Hurricanes announced the hire of Mississippi State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz to the same position Saturday afternoon. Diaz is a native of Miami and his father once served as the city's mayor.
“Starkville is a special place and I could not be more thankful for the opportunity [MSU head coach] Dan Mullen and [athletic director] Scott Stricklin gave my family and I,” Diaz said in a Miami statement. “The Bulldog fans are like no other and it has been a privilege to be a part of such a great program, University and community. I wish the MSU players, coaches and fans all the best. Their future is bright. We knew it would take a very unique opportunity for us to consider leaving. God blessed me with a chance to return home, to coach in my hometown and to reunite with family. It is the kind of opportunity that comes along rarely in this business. It was simply too good to pass up. I can’t wait to help Coach Richt build a championship program at Miami.”
Diaz spent one season at Mississippi State. The Bulldogs, who went 9-4 and beat NC State in the Belk Bowl, were No. 57 in total defense in 2015 and gave up 5.32 yards per play. Diaz was Louisiana Tech's defensive coordinator in 2014 after he was fired from Texas as the Longhorns' DC.
Richt said Diaz will implement a "4-3 attacking style defense" in the Miami statement.
Diaz joins former Missouri assistant Craig Kuligowski on the defensive side of the ball. Kuligowski, the former defensive line coach at Mizzou, is the Hurricanes' new DL coach. The team has also hired Thomas Brown as co-offensive coordinator and running backs coach. Brown served as Georgia's running backs coach under Richt in 2015.
For more Miami news, visit CaneSport.com.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
