Bob Diaco: The Thread

[stlnd01]

I wonder what went on under that beautiful mane? It seemed like Bobby D started reading his own press clippings and that ego grew like his hair did. His success here definitely changed him.

He’s definitely an unusual cat, but the dude can coach some defense. Even at UConn, IIRC, he had some good ones (for UConn). That said, his scheme and personnel requirements are unusual enough that it takes a few years to build what he wants, which is a lot of time to ask for in college these days. Especially given he’s not much of a recruiter (a big red flag at ND, IMO, was his inability to replace Teo and Nix. He was never going to replicate 2012 without studs in the middle.).

He’ll be a major-program DC again, IMO, especially if he commits to recruiting more. But he’d have been too big a shift from Elko for us to bring back this year.

 

[Legacy]

Diaco joins Oklahoma's staff.

 

[ScooterIrish]

Diaco joins Oklahoma's staff.

As an analyst. Dude went from the DC of a top team in 2012 to an analyst. Woof.

 

[BGIF]

Friday Five: Ranking the worst college football coaches against the spread
You aren't always betting on something, sometimes you bet against it
Tom Fornelli Jun 1, 2018

Honorable Mention: Scottie Montgomery (6-17-1), David Beaty (13-23), Nick Rolovich (7-17-1), Bob Diaco (9-27-1)

 

[Old Man Mike]

As the Bama center said: "They're good because they're simple ... but they're simple."

 

[ab2cmiller]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Ruffin McNeill is Oklahoma’s interim defensive coordinator. Bob Diaco will move from defensive specialist to coach the outside linebackers.<br><br>Here’s Lincoln Riley: <a href="https://t.co/rlprxHTRkj">pic.twitter.com/rlprxHTRkj</a></p>— Matt Fortuna (@Matt_Fortuna) <a href="https://twitter.com/Matt_Fortuna/status/1049287744458031104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 8, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[ab2cmiller]

From reading the Twittersphere, it looks like there were lots of Nebraska fans praying that Oklahoma would promote Diaco to the DC slot. LOL

 

[IrishSteelhead]

From reading the Twittersphere, it looks like there were lots of Nebraska fans praying that Oklahoma would promote Diaco to the DC slot. LOL

They should be praying for a win instead


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[FDNYIrish1]

Diaco is a Van Gorder with better hair. Caught lightning in a bottle in 2012.

 

[NDRock]

From reading the Twittersphere, it looks like there were lots of Nebraska fans praying that Oklahoma would promote Diaco to the DC slot. LOL

I can’t put it all on Diaco. He came in for one year, during the end of Riley’s regime. Last year’s defense was actually better than the one Nebraska is currently putting out there.

 

[NDRock]

Diaco is a Van Gorder with better hair. Caught lightning in a bottle in 2012.

Pretty sure his defenses all four years were decent to great. Van Gorder was never even decent.

 

[NDMIA]

DIACO
2010 23rd PPG - 50th ypg - 8-5
2011 24th PPG - 30th ypg - 8-5
2012 2nd PPG - 7th ypg - 12-1
2013 27th PPG - 31st ypg - 9-4

ELKO
2017 32nd PPG - 44th ypg - 10-3

LEA
2018 27th PPG - 49th ypg - 6-0

I know these stats are simplistic and the styles of play are different but Bob Diaco was a good defensive coordinator under Brian Kelly. That’s just a fact. There were some things that fans didn’t love and I think it was good for both parties that he move on to a head coaching job, but to say he was a bad coach or didn’t know defenses is just disrespectful. The dude can coach.

 

[FDNYIrish1]

DIACO
2010 23rd PPG - 50th ypg - 8-5
2011 24th PPG - 30th ypg - 8-5
2012 2nd PPG - 7th ypg - 12-1
2013 27th PPG - 31st ypg - 9-4

ELKO
2017 32nd PPG - 44th ypg - 10-3

LEA
2018 27th PPG - 49th ypg - 6-0

I know these stats are simplistic and the styles of play are different but Bob Diaco was a good defensive coordinator under Brian Kelly. That’s just a fact. There were some things that fans didn’t love and I think it was good for both parties that he move on to a head coaching job, but to say he was a bad coach or didn’t know defenses is just disrespectful. The dude can coach.

He was solid. I know some guys love him so I was busting some chops. Did some great things, but he damn near gave me a stroke against FSU when he made no adjustments in 2nd half. Curious as to why he fell off and is just can’t get another coordinator job. Louisville hired the Stache for crying out loud. You’d think a successful coordinator with HC experience would warrant a look by someone.

 

[NDMIA]

He was solid. I know some guys love him so I was busting some chops. Did some great things, but he damn near gave me a stroke against FSU when he made no adjustments in 2nd half. Curious as to why he fell off and is just can’t get another coordinator job. Louisville hired the Stache for crying out loud. You’d think a successful coordinator with HC experience would warrant a look by someone.

Good defenses at ND aside, he seemed to weird a bit of a weird dude. He also runs a 3-4 defense, at least he did and maybe his schemes are rigid and haven’t adjusted for the new style of FBS football. There are a lot of factors, but a successful coordinator like himself should be at Power 5 team coordinating a defense. If Vangorder can get a job then Diaco should get one.

 

[Irish#1]

Good defenses at ND aside, he seemed to weird a bit of a weird dude. He also runs a 3-4 defense, at least he did and maybe his schemes are rigid and haven’t adjusted for the new style of FBS football. There are a lot of factors, but a successful coordinator like himself should be at Power 5 team coordinating a defense. If Vangorder can get a job then Diaco should get one.

Diaco's problem was him not being out on the recruiting trail like he should have been. He also had a rigid set of physical standards his defensive recruits needed to match for him to show interest. He also loved to bring an S or CB blitz when teams got inside the 20.

 

[irishnd31]

Just curious, does he still have the hair of an angel?

 

[stlnd01]

I still think Diaco will be back as a DC at P5 school before long. Maybe not a Notre Dame, or even Nebraska, level, but someplace where the spotlight's not quite so bright (and the recruiting options aren't plentiful enough for him to be too choosy for is own good).
He's a good coach. Way better for college football players than Van Gorder. He is a weird dude, so it will take the right fit with a head coach/program, but in the right spot he could have a long, fruitful DC career.

 

[SoIll]

Just curious, does he still have the hair of an angel?

Yes. He is still beautiful..

 

[BeauBenken]

One of the funniest things to me is that a big reason Diaco had (huge) success is that he coaches fundamentals -- his scheme isn't complicated. The players can just run it well. I think he recruited size over athleticism because he thought that he didn't need the greatest athletes, just bodies who could play the scheme effectively.

 

[irishnd31]

Yes. He is still beautiful..

 

[IrishLax]

DIACO
2010 23rd PPG - 50th ypg - 8-5
2011 24th PPG - 30th ypg - 8-5
2012 2nd PPG - 7th ypg - 12-1
2013 27th PPG - 31st ypg - 9-4

ELKO
2017 32nd PPG - 44th ypg - 10-3

LEA
2018 27th PPG - 49th ypg - 6-0

I know these stats are simplistic and the styles of play are different but Bob Diaco was a good defensive coordinator under Brian Kelly. That’s just a fact. There were some things that fans didn’t love and I think it was good for both parties that he move on to a head coaching job, but to say he was a bad coach or didn’t know defenses is just disrespectful. The dude can coach.

Diaco basically stopped recruiting for two full classes, and has a unique personality. He created massive depth issues that should never happen at Notre Dame. After flaming out at UCONN and Nebraska he kicked the tires on coming back to ND as a position coach or analyst and we weren't interested.

While his defenses performed well on a vanilla stat basis, here is how they ranked in S&P+/FEI respectively --
2010 - 10th/11th
2011 - 11th/18th
2012 - 8th/14th
2013 - 48th/49th

That's very good... consistently in the top 10-20 range... but the wheels were already falling off the cart by 2013 on account of talent depletion. He signed a good class in 2011, and then the lack of recruiting success in the '12 class and '13 (especially at linebacker and defensive tackle) set the table for the struggles over the next three seasons. These talent/recruiting issues were compounded by BVG being as bad as it gets as a coach and the Frozen Five thing and other nonsense.

For reference, this year's defense currently ranks 5th in S&P+, better than any Diaco defense. The primary issue with Diaco's scheme is that kids don't want to play in it and he couldn't recruit to it. Everyone likes the rush end spot in the 3-4 but no one likes being the block-eating NT. Nobody likes being the gap plugging DEs. And there are very few 6'5" 280+ DE prospects to choose from coming out of HS. There are also very few 6'3" 240+ LB prospects to choose from. No one likes playing super soft zone coverage every down as a CB.

I think he could be a good fit at a school like Kansas State that does a ton of JUCO recruiting and where he can focus primarily on guys who are physical fits without a lot of options. But he has proven he either can't or doesn't want to recruit HS prospects.

 

[PANDFAN]

Yes. He is still beautiful..

i was reading an article about the new interim d coordinator Ruffin at oklahoma and i guess his wife made mentioned how she has a crush on Diaco...lol

 

[ulukinatme]

Diaco basically stopped recruiting for two full classes, and has a unique personality. He created massive depth issues that should never happen at Notre Dame. After flaming out at UCONN and Nebraska he kicked the tires on coming back to ND as a position coach or analyst and we weren't interested.

While his defenses performed well on a vanilla stat basis, here is how they ranked in S&P+/FEI respectively --
2010 - 10th/11th
2011 - 11th/18th
2012 - 8th/14th
2013 - 48th/49th

That's very good... consistently in the top 10-20 range... but the wheels were already falling off the cart by 2013 on account of talent depletion. He signed a good class in 2011, and then the lack of recruiting success in the '12 class and '13 (especially at linebacker and defensive tackle) set the table for the struggles over the next three seasons. These talent/recruiting issues were compounded by BVG being as bad as it gets as a coach and the Frozen Five thing and other nonsense.

For reference, this year's defense currently ranks 5th in S&P+, better than any Diaco defense. The primary issue with Diaco's scheme is that kids don't want to play in it and he couldn't recruit to it. Everyone likes the rush end spot in the 3-4 but no one likes being the block-eating NT. Nobody likes being the gap plugging DEs. And there are very few 6'5" 280+ DE prospects to choose from coming out of HS. There are also very few 6'3" 240+ LB prospects to choose from. No one likes playing super soft zone coverage every down as a CB.

I think he could be a good fit at a school like Kansas State that does a ton of JUCO recruiting and where he can focus primarily on guys who are physical fits without a lot of options. But he has proven he either can't or doesn't want to recruit HS prospects.

This hits the nail on the head. There were people dismissing the fact we struggled to recruit quality MLBs and NTs after Nix/Teo were gone. Those two were a huge factor in our defensive success. Some of us tried to point out that everything in the 3-4 starts with the two most important positions: NT and MLB, but there were some people not buying it. Hopefully we learned our lesson on that one, because once Diaco was gone we had to scramble just to get players like Cage right before signing day to fill the holes that Diaco failed to recruit on defense.

 

[NDRock]

Diaco basically stopped recruiting for two full classes, and has a unique personality. He created massive depth issues that should never happen at Notre Dame. After flaming out at UCONN and Nebraska he kicked the tires on coming back to ND as a position coach or analyst and we weren't interested.

While his defenses performed well on a vanilla stat basis, here is how they ranked in S&P+/FEI respectively --
2010 - 10th/11th
2011 - 11th/18th
2012 - 8th/14th
2013 - 48th/49th

That's very good... consistently in the top 10-20 range... but the wheels were already falling off the cart by 2013 on account of talent depletion. He signed a good class in 2011, and then the lack of recruiting success in the '12 class and '13 (especially at linebacker and defensive tackle) set the table for the struggles over the next three seasons. These talent/recruiting issues were compounded by BVG being as bad as it gets as a coach and the Frozen Five thing and other nonsense.

For reference, this year's defense currently ranks 5th in S&P+, better than any Diaco defense. The primary issue with Diaco's scheme is that kids don't want to play in it and he couldn't recruit to it. Everyone likes the rush end spot in the 3-4 but no one likes being the block-eating NT. Nobody likes being the gap plugging DEs. And there are very few 6'5" 280+ DE prospects to choose from coming out of HS. There are also very few 6'3" 240+ LB prospects to choose from. No one likes playing super soft zone coverage every down as a CB.

I think he could be a good fit at a school like Kansas State that does a ton of JUCO recruiting and where he can focus primarily on guys who are physical fits without a lot of options. But he has proven he either can't or doesn't want to recruit HS prospects.

Do you think he stopped putting much into recruiting because he thought Kelly was leaving after 2012? Seemed like Kelly tried to get out but didn't. Just wonder if that had an affect on recruiting/effort.

 

[irishnd31]

i was reading an article about the new interim d coordinator Ruffin at oklahoma and i guess his wife made mentioned how she has a crush on Diaco...lol

Diaco can do so much better than the wife of the INTERIM D Coordinator. If he's going skirt chasin' Diaco don't even wash his balls for anything less than HC's wife or daughter (if she is of age and of course would take him as a lover). Plain and simple.

 

[irishnd31]

i was reading an article about the new interim d coordinator Ruffin at oklahoma and i guess his wife made mentioned how she has a crush on Diaco...lol

That is hilarious tho.

 

[ulukinatme]

Diaco can do so much better than the wife of the INTERIM D Coordinator. If he's going skirt chasin' Diaco don't even wash his balls for anything less than HC's wife or daughter (if she is of age and of course would take him as a lover). Plain and simple.

 

[drayer54]

Diaco is a Van Gorder with better hair. Caught lightning in a bottle in 2012.

Diaco was 1000X better than Van Gorder. Even the coaches wives agree.

 

[ACamp1900]

Diaco is not perfect or some hall of famer, he's also one of the better coaches ND has had in a while... both can be true. He should never be mentioned along BVG in terms of ability or production, that's crazy talk.

 

[irishnd31]

Diaco is not perfect or some hall of famer, he's also one of the better coaches ND has had in a while... both can be true. He should never be mentioned along BVG in terms of ability or production, that's crazy talk.

… or hair or looks. Don't forget those.