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2026 Derrek Cooper 5* RB/ATH from Chaminade Commits to Texas

No_Fly_Zone said:
There's a ton of context here that isn't necessary. If UM wins the ACCCG (something we have never done), thereby getting us into the playoff (another thing we've never done), and we don't embarrass ourselves in the playoff, then it's a successful season regardless if we go 9-3 in the regular season. I'd hope we could all agree on that much.
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I agree, but clearly we can't because the only reason I made the nuanced post was in response to a guy saying 9-3 isn't a good season.
 
DubCaliCane said:
Manny Diaz got absolutely railroaded by Blake James and he is now just a whipping boy for the rest of time.

He’s a great defensive mind and a good football coach. Corny as ****, and it remains to be seen if he can RUN a program, but Blake James is the monster who put us in this mess.

There is no way in god’s green earth that Manny Diaz should have gotten his first HC at a serious P5 program. Let alone Miami. We hired him away from Temple. TEMPLE. Which would have been his first gig.

He was in over his head and was a lamb for slaughter. I need less Manny slander and more Blake James animosity.
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I agree. He also was a disaster in recruiting which I do not like and that was his own doing. Not just for a results based perspective but just from being a clown. So that part I do blame him.

But as always blame is at the top. Giving Mario the keys to the kingdom with zero job search, for really no reason other than nepotism and some decent results at Oregon bothered me but nothing you can really do at this point

Anyway…time to bench
 
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JHallCanes said:
Two things can be true at the same time:

Mario made things worse when he got here

Mario has us getting better each year

I deal with marketing agencies and vendors every day that feed me the same line of **** trying to twist and turn numbers to fit an agenda. I get how it’s done.

Mario wins the ACC this year and/or makes noise in the playoffs while showing the 2024 recruiting class is legit…then I’ll be the first person to say I was wrong
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I'm not loyal to any take. I'm looking for a reason to believe.
 
JHallCanes said:
I agree. He also was a disaster in recruiting which I do not like and that was his own doing. Not just for a results based perspective but just from being a clown. So that part I do blame him.

But as always blame is at the top. Giving Mario the keys to the kingdom with zero job search, for really no reason other than nepotism and some decent results at Oregon bothered me but nothing you can really do at this point

Anyway…time to bench
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It's the same thing with JD. I don't dislike JD as a person or a coach, same as Manny. These people were given jobs they don't deserve.

I have a 4 year old, if I put her in the driver's seat of my car, put it in drive, and close the door, what happens? 1-800-ALLSTATE.

But do I hate my daughter for not being able to do something she's comically unqualified to do? Or am I the stupid **** who per her in that position to begin with?

Manny is a fine DC. He's a very smart guy. He's coached under some successful dudes. If I had to bet, I'd bet that he develops into a pretty good coach, because he can oversee a competent defense and he's smart enough to know it's much more about the people you put around yourself. Duke is the perfect landing spot for him, for now.

All that to say, **** Blake James and **** Dan Radakovic where they breathe.
 
OrangeBowlMagic said:
It's the same thing with JD. I don't dislike JD as a person or a coach, same as Manny. These people were given jobs they don't deserve.

I have a 4 year old, if I put her in the driver's seat of my car, put it in drive, and close the door, what happens? 1-800-ALLSTATE.

But do I hate my daughter for not being able to do something she's comically unqualified to do? Or am I the stupid **** who per her in that position to begin with?

Manny is a fine DC. He's a very smart guy. He's coached under some successful dudes. If I had to bet, I'd bet that he develops into a pretty good coach, because he can oversee a competent defense and he's smart enough to know it's much more about the people you put around yourself. Duke is the perfect landing spot for him, for now.

All that to say, **** Blake James and **** Dan Radakovic where they breathe.
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I came around to Mario once I admitted he was about as good as we were gonna do given our history

I’m glad someone is here we are committed to fwiw

Just can’t really read this excuse crap anymore after we sat home watching a cast of Miami rejects play in the ACCCG and playoff last year
 
DubCaliCane said:
Manny Diaz got absolutely railroaded by Blake James and he is now just a whipping boy for the rest of time.

He’s a great defensive mind and a good football coach. Corny as ****, and it remains to be seen if he can RUN a program, but Blake James is the monster who put us in this mess.

There is no way in god’s green earth that Manny Diaz should have gotten his first HC at a serious P5 program. Let alone Miami. We hired him away from Temple. TEMPLE. Which would have been his first gig.

He was in over his head and was a lamb for slaughter. I need less Manny slander and more Blake James animosity.
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He's given up record amount of rushing yards at 3 different programs and that's with P5 talent

TrumpyCane wants to know how he's a "great" defensive mind
 
TrumpyCane said:
He's given up record amount of rushing yards at 3 different programs and that's with P5 talent

TrumpyCane wants to know how he's a "great" defensive mind
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Past Five Seasons:
  • Diaz's defenses have all ranked in the top 9 nationally in TFL per game, including #2 in 2024 (first year Duke) and 2023, and #4 in 2020.
  • During his two seasons as Defensive Coordinator at Penn State (2022-2023), his units were top 10 nationally in scoring defense and led the country in fewest first downs allowed (2023) and sacks/TFL (2023),
  • His 2022 Penn State defense was also top 7 in takeaways and top 6 in sacks.
  • In 2024 season at Duke, his defense ranked #4 nationally in sacks and #7 in turnovers gained, including #2 in fumbles recovered.

That excludes his time at Miami where in 2018 he had #1 defense in 3rd down conversion and the #4 defense overall.

Like @JHallCanes said, his recruiting is abhorrent and will ultimately be the thing that will sink him in terms of running a program, but if you look at the landscape of college football, Manny Diaz is a Top 5-10 Defensive Coordinator. Lisp and all. Saying he is not a good defensive coach is wrong.
 
DubCaliCane said:
Past Five Seasons:
  • Diaz's defenses have all ranked in the top 9 nationally in TFL per game, including #2 in 2024 (first year Duke) and 2023, and #4 in 2020.
  • During his two seasons as Defensive Coordinator at Penn State (2022-2023), his units were top 10 nationally in scoring defense and led the country in fewest first downs allowed (2023) and sacks/TFL (2023),
  • His 2022 Penn State defense was also top 7 in takeaways and top 6 in sacks.
  • In 2024 season at Duke, his defense ranked #4 nationally in sacks and #7 in turnovers gained, including #2 in fumbles recovered.

That excludes his time at Miami where in 2018 he had #1 defense in 3rd down conversion and the #4 defense overall.

Like @JHallCanes said, his recruiting is abhorrent and will ultimately be the thing that will sink him in terms of running a program, but if you look at the landscape of college football, Manny Diaz is a Top 5-10 Defensive Coordinator. Lisp and all. Saying he is not a good defensive coach is wrong.
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You’re debating things with a Furry fwiw
 
TrumpyCane said:
TrumpyCane wants to know how he's a "great" defensive mind
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Because people love sacks/pressures and associate that with elite defenses. The problem is after a 6 yard loss we would then give up a 3rd and 22. He coaches like he is playing Madden. I'm willing to bet there are guys on this board who if they sat down and talked Defense on a deeper level Manny would be lost. He is a massive tool and I regret even supporting him for 2 of the 3 years he was here.


He was blessed with NFL talent all over the PSU defense especially on the line and an offense that played at a moderate pace and could eat clock when they needed with 2 legit backs. He got out of there at the right time.

He will turn Duke into a dumpster too in 2-3 years.
 
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DubCaliCane said:
Past Five Seasons:
  • Diaz's defenses have all ranked in the top 9 nationally in TFL per game, including #2 in 2024 (first year Duke) and 2023, and #4 in 2020.
  • During his two seasons as Defensive Coordinator at Penn State (2022-2023), his units were top 10 nationally in scoring defense and led the country in fewest first downs allowed (2023) and sacks/TFL (2023),
  • His 2022 Penn State defense was also top 7 in takeaways and top 6 in sacks.
  • In 2024 season at Duke, his defense ranked #4 nationally in sacks and #7 in turnovers gained, including #2 in fumbles recovered.

That excludes his time at Miami where in 2018 he had #1 defense in 3rd down conversion and the #4 defense overall.

Like @JHallCanes said, his recruiting is abhorrent and will ultimately be the thing that will sink him in terms of running a program, but if you look at the landscape of college football, Manny Diaz is a Top 5-10 Defensive Coordinator. Lisp and all. Saying he is not a good defensive coach is wrong.
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The problem with Manny is once teams realized all they had to do was run on him it was over.
 
JamesQuall said:
This is a verbatim quote from somebody in this very thread and he is not the only one that I have read this same sentiment:

"Im not holding Mario accountable for 2 decades of sucking."

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You can @ me. I will stand in the paint,

I guess I need to break it down. When you dont support something for 20 years, when you dont develop at a high level, when you basically suck compared to your past, it has lasting effects.

Jeremiah Smith has never seen Miami win double digit games back to back seasons. Derek Cooper has never seen Miami win an ACC title. James Johnson hasnt seen Miami put a pure DT in the first round since Vince Wilfork. Miami has had terrible culture, and frankly we have been a soft program. Charmin baby soft.

Mario is trying to change that. Many improvements have been made, many still need to happen.

Mario is now in year 4 hold him accountable the @JamesQuall . Vegas says we win 9 let me know your accountability measure. How many does he need to win, and how exactly are you going to hold him accountable?
 
gacaneaddict said:
You can @ me. I will stand in the paint,

I guess I need to break it down. When you dont support something for 20 years, when you dont develop at a high level, when you basically suck compared to your past, it has lasting effects.

Jeremiah Smith has never seen Miami win double digit games back to back seasons. Derek Cooper has never seen Miami win an ACC title. James Johnson hasnt seen Miami put a pure DT in the first round since Vince Wilfork. Miami has had terrible culture, and frankly we have been a soft program. Charmin baby soft.

Mario is trying to change that. Many improvements have been made, many still need to happen.

Mario is now in year 4 hold him accountable the @JamesQuall . Vegas says we win 9 let me know your accountability measure. How many does he need to win, and how exactly are you going to hold him accountable?
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No, no, no. You can’t ask me what my “accountability measure” is without answering my question first.

When can we hold him accountable?

It seems like you’re saying we can’t do it in year 4. So, when can we?

Next year? Year 6? Do we need to give him the full 10 before we can? C’mon now, let us know. Don’t hold back.
 
gacaneaddict said:
You can @ me. I will stand in the paint,

I guess I need to break it down. When you dont support something for 20 years, when you dont develop at a high level, when you basically suck compared to your past, it has lasting effects.

Jeremiah Smith has never seen Miami win double digit games back to back seasons. Derek Cooper has never seen Miami win an ACC title. James Johnson hasnt seen Miami put a pure DT in the first round since Vince Wilfork. Miami has had terrible culture, and frankly we have been a soft program. Charmin baby soft.

Mario is trying to change that. Many improvements have been made, many still need to happen.

Mario is now in year 4 hold him accountable the @JamesQuall . Vegas says we win 9 let me know your accountability measure. How many does he need to win, and how exactly are you going to hold him accountable?
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so if Texas had the same culture problem for many years is Sark just that much better of a coach than Mario?
 
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