Officially, Manny Diaz is a Blue Devil. Penn State’s hunt for a new defensive coordinator officially began on Thursday when Duke named Diaz as the team’s newest head coach.
“We are grateful and humbled for this opportunity and could not be more excited to be the head football coach at Duke University,” Diaz stated in a press release. “I would especially like to thank [Duke athletic director Nina King] and [Duke president Dr. Vincent E. Price] for their genuine dedication to this program and for their confidence in me and our family. We are thrilled to be a part of Duke University, an amazing institution in every way. I can’t wait to start working.”
Mike Elko, who was named Texas A&M’s next head coach in late November, leaves his position as head coach of the Duke program to take on Diaz. During his tenure as head coach of the Blue Devils, Elko finished 16-9 overall and 9-7 in the ACC, including a 9-4 campaign in 2022. In both seasons, Elko guided Duke to bowl games.
A number of outlets stated earlier on Thursday that Duke was “targeting” Diaz for its opening; later on Thursday night, a number of outlets stated that Diaz’s hiring had “finalized.” Duke announced Diaz on Friday, officially announcing it.
“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,” King said in a press release. “Manny is a superb football coach who will take advantage of the positive momentum of this program. His prior experiences have equipped him for this opportunity.” A superb collaborator and communicator, Manny has the dynamic capacity to build meaningful connections with both internal and external stakeholders in the context of an effective football program. In his role as head football coach at Duke, I have no doubt that Manny will inspire the young men in our program to achieve their goals on and off the field.”
Turning fifty in March, Diaz has the chance to expand on Durham, North Carolina-based Elko’s foundation and bring Duke back to the steady state it reached under former head coach David Cutcliffe in the 2010s. The Blue Devils qualified for six bowl games in seven seasons between 2012 and 2018. Eight of the sixteen bowl appearances in Duke’s illustrious football history have come from Elko and Cutcliffe.
Diaz is making his second attempt at leading a collegiate football team as head coach of Duke. After leading Miami (Fla.) to a 21-15 record and a 16-9 record in ACC play after three seasons, Diaz was fired by Hurricanes brass in favor of hiring Oregon graduate Mario Cristobal.
After the 2018 season, Diaz was supposed to take over as head coach at Temple. However, when Hurricanes coach Mark Richt abruptly announced his retirement, Miami hired Diaz out of the Owls less than a month into his position.
