DURHAM – In his opening press conference as the Duke football coach, Manny Diaz said the same thing time and again at Pascal Field House on Saturday morning.

“There’s something about Duke,” Diaz reiterated during his 12-minute opening comments as the 23rd coach in the history of the Blue Devils’ football program.

Diaz, 49, has nearly 30 years of coaching experience. He most recently spent two seasons as the defensive coordinator at Penn State, helping the Nittany Lions become one of the top defensive teams in the nation before making the move to join the Blue Devils.

“Manny is the perfect fit for Duke,” Duke athletics director Nina King said.

Here are some takeaways from Diaz’s first public appearance as Duke’s football coach.

Why Manny Diaz wanted to coach Duke football

Several factors drew Manny Diaz to Duke. A chat with one of Duke’s current players convinced Diaz that he was making the right choice.

“The ‘something about Duke’ story finally made sense,” Diaz said. “What he explained to me is this: ‘When we’re on campus, we are surrounded by the best people in the world.’ That’s the ‘something about Duke.’”

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During his time with the Hurricanes from 2019-21, Diaz went 21-15 before he was fired and joined the coaching staff at Penn State. He wanted another chance to be a head coach.

“If you have the chance to do it again, make sure you do it at the right place. Make sure you do it somewhere where alignment, support and expectations can all meld into one,” Diaz said.

“. … I feel really, really good about the support we have. I feel good about the timing – I think people are energized to make Duke excellent. I feel, sometimes, timing matters. I feel like I’m at the right time and right place.”

Next steps for Manny Diaz, Duke football: recruiting

The Blue Devils are 7-5, set to close the year at the Birmingham Bowl. Giving the current team a positive ending is at the top of Diaz’s list.

“We gotta keep that current team together. There’s great talent, there’s great people in that locker room, and we gotta build on that. The first order of business is that they gotta go win a bowl game,” Diaz said.

“They gotta finish the season in the manner that it deserves. … Trooper Taylor and the rest of the guys I had a chance to meet with (Friday), a phenomenal job. Many of those guys are in a level of uncertainty that they don’t deserve. … I look forward to meeting with those guys one-on-one and assessing their potential for a future here at Duke as we get down the road.”

Diaz has also connected with Duke's commitments in the 2024 recruiting class.

“From a recruiting standpoint, we’re in an era where time is of the essence. We believe there’s an outstanding recruiting class that we need to get across the (finish) line,” Diaz said.

“. … We all know the reality of the portal. We are not here to tear down what’s been done, but at the same time, we’re not here to sustain what’s been done. The growth that’s happened the past year, we’ve got to continue to grow on that.”

Manny Diaz’s plan for Duke’s offense, defense

Diaz didn’t dive into the weeds of offensive and defensive philosophy, but he offered a broad idea of what he wants to see on both sides of the ball.

“If we’re talking about defense, we’re talking about attack, we’re talking about aggression. To me, the point is to get other people to mess up,” he said.

“. … Offense, you’ve got to create explosive plays. Our offensive identity, we want to be explosive, we want to be able to push the ball down the field.”

How good can Duke football be under Manny Diaz?

After winning 10 games over three seasons, Duke was 16-9 with consecutive bowl appearances under Mike Elko.

“I think people are energized and realizing that Duke is not about one man,” Diaz said. “We appreciate all of his efforts, but this is a collective event. People are now ready to step forward. The word that has me so fired up and excited is ‘galvanized.’”

There’s an urgency from Diaz to help Duke elevate its football program.

“We don’t see any reason why we can’t be elite,” he said. “If you’re elite at something, you can be elite at anything. If you’re not, it’s a choice to settle – to being second-best.”

For him, it starts with belief.

“We will go as far as we believe we will go. I believe that. … How far we can go is a direct relation to what we believe we can accomplish,” Diaz said.

“If we see ourselves as incapable, we will be incapable. If we see ourselves as capable, we can accomplish anything. … Be obsessed with mastery.”

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Why Manny Diaz wanted to be the Duke football coach