How Manny Diaz said a former Penn State football All-American is already making an impact on the Lions as a staffer
Penn State had something of a staff shuffle this offseason. That was especially the case off the field.
The Nittany Lions brought in two new coordinators between an Outback Bowl loss to Arkansas and the start of spring practice in 2022. Manny Diaz now oversees the defense, of course, while Stacy Collins leads the special teams.
Head coach James Franklin knew both hires were crucial as his program aims to improve off of an 11-11 combined record over the last two seasons. But, so, too, were the ones he had to make off the field. Some of those were made to fill positions vacated by departed staffers. A few, however, were newly-created ones, as the arms race to add analysts, recruiting department members, and more continues across college football.
“We have made some strides there, but I think it maybe appears a little bit magnified based on replacing some people that left, as well,” Franklin said in March.
“We had some GAs move on for full-time positions, some analysts move on for full-time positions and coordinator positions, so it’s a combination of both.”
A former Penn State All-American is already making an impact
Dan Connor is one of the new additions to the staff. The former two-time All-American at Penn State left his post as the defensive coordinator at Widener to become an analytics coordinator for the defensive staff at his alma mater a couple of months ago. Diaz said he’s already been impressed by what Connor brings to the table.
“Dan is sharp,” Diaz told reporters last week. “Not just in terms of linebacker play, but his experience as a defensive coordinator. He really understands scheme, understands the big picture defensively. He’s been learning what we’re doing scheme-wise.
“That nuance to be able to talk back and forth, to talk to me about what he sees in our guys, and to be able to help out in that, what a valuable resource.”
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Connor is one of five Penn State lettermen on Franklin’s ninth staff in State College. He’s joined by tight ends coach Ty Howle, corners coach Terry Smith, graduate assistant Deion Barnes, Wally Richardson, who directs the Football Lettermen’s Club, and assistant recruiting coordinator Alan Zemaitis.
Diaz stresses strong staff in State College
The head coach, his coordinators, and a team’s quarterback all have one thing in common: They tend to get too much credit or an unfair amount of blame when things go very well or quite poorly. Diaz was quick to point that out during his chat with reporters while also praising his Penn State defensive staff as a whole.
“Everyone likes to talk about the coordinator,” Diaz said. “We have a phenomenal defensive staff here. The on-the-field coaches, our analysts off the field; one thing that Coach Franklin’s allowed us to do is, we’ve got a great off-the-field staff now,” Diaz said.
“Which, you’re seeing more and more of in college football, even down to our [graduate assistants]. It makes it really easy. Because again, it’s not about one guy. It’s about a staff, and to me, we’ve got a good team in that room.”
Penn State starts its second-to-last week of spring practice on Monday. The Lions culminate their 15 days of drills with the Blue-White game at Beaver Stadium. It starts at 2 p.m. on April 23. Big Ten Network will also televise the scrimmage.
