Per multiple media sources, the Miami Hurricanes have chosen Manny Diaz as their next head football coach. Just one catch. Diaz, a current Miami assistant, has already accepted the head coaching job at Temple for next season.
Diaz has been the Hurricanes defensive coordinator. Just two weeks he accepted the head coaching job at Temple. He signed his first recruiting class for the Owls on December 19th.
He replaces Mark Richt, who resigned at Miami early Sunday morning, announcing he was retiring from coaching.
In a statement released Sunday night by the school, Diaz said, “Miami is home. The University of Miami is home. The U has truly been ‘the job’ for me since I first got into coaching. Having worked here over the past three years, I came to understand what it means to be part of ‘The U’ and came to appreciate the passion and commitment to excellence of all who proudly call themselves Canes. We will restore the football program to its place among the nation’s elite and we will do it with hard work, dedicated coaches, and outstanding student-athletes. I’m excited about working with Blake and his team to make that happen.”
Diaz said Sunday morning he was working on 2019 season plans for Temple when he heard Richt was stepping down.
In Miami’s official release, athletic director Blake James said, “Manny is one of the nation’s elite coaches and the Canes’ Family has already embraced him and his incredible work ethic over the past three years. He is absolutely the passionate and innovative leader that our program needs, and we will work together to build an incredible staff to move our program back into championship contention.”
Diaz has also been an assistant at Mississippi State, Louisiana Tech, Texas, and Middle Tennessee State.
