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This was not just about recruiting; though, it had something to do with it.
Diaz was the recruiter, in many cases, for the defense. Richt okayed the guys Diaz wanted. But Diaz was the guy doing most of the visits.
I had talked a bit about this in my last thread when Diaz took the Temple job
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Cane from the Bend wrote:Manny Diaz, who was thought of by many to be the Head Coach in waiting when Richt hired him, was announced as the Head Coach of Temple.
It's one thing to say there could be a potential future at the U for Diaz, should Richt retire in the next few years. But let's face it.
Manny Diaz is the adhesive which holds this team together. He was the brainchild of the turnover chain, and the energy that was so magnetic, that his vigor and passion excited some of the greatest defensive players in the country to join the program.
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I had always thought of Diaz as the Head Coach in waiting. I even posted it back when Richt hired him as the Defensive Coordinator, that Richt was aging, and Diaz could be our future.
The reason I feel that Diaz took the Temple Head Coach position, is that if Richt were to leave, Manny knew he'd be getting a phone call. But no one expected it this soon.
When Richt was hired, he had a given time. Then, after the way Miami finished last season, Richt got a contract extension. I believe that Diaz assumed he was being pushed back a few years, and he wanted to put the Head Coach hat on within the time frame that he figured when he came to Miami.
He is a guy that bring a lot of energy with him. And the players all respond to him well ~ the question is, will there be a new Offensive Coordinator coming in.
The fan base wants it. The recruits will likely respond better if there is.
The current players may be the Wild Card. They want Thomas Brown to stay. But Brown was the Co-Offensive Coordinator under Richt. And if his playbook is the same, we won't see any difference. Brown is, after all, one of the people who was responsible for the development of the offensive players these past 3 years. And all we have done is regress.
I don't know if that was
Because of Richt's vision to run the same stale offense from 18 years ago. O if Brown is merely a faulty cog in the machine, which attempts to produce the continued defective product.
Personally, I think we've lost too much ground to keep him and hope that it was all Richt.
Maybe Manny feels differently. He was there on the practice field with Brown, and saw first hand who was the influence.
But right now, I'm feeling a little selfish. I'd like to get a new OC who is young and has the energy to match Diaz's. Someone whose game plan is innovative and has the ability to make adjustments when there is an obvious hole to fill.
At the moment, we wait.
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