Penn State's 'Backer Plug Sim
Penn State's 'Backer Plug Sim
Newly appointed Duke Head Coach, Manny Diaz, used a 'backer plug simulated pressure with a non-traditional Tampa coverage behind it as one of his top pressures during the '23 season.
For much of his career, Manny Diaz has been known for his propensity to use Fire Zone pressures on passing downs. He got his start under legendary defensive coordinator Chuck Amato. He worked his way up the ranks, landing his first Power 5 coordinating job in 2010 for Dan Mullen at Mississippi State. After one season, Diaz was tabbed the DC for Texas from ‘11-’13.
After the ‘retirement’ of Mack Brown, Diaz moved to Lousiana Tech (‘14), back to Miss. State (‘15), and then spent six seasons ‘home’ in Miami, first as the DC (‘16-’18) and then concluding his time as head coach (‘19-’21). Following the ‘21 season, Diaz was let go, finishing his three-year stint 21-15. During his time in Coral Gables, current LSU Tiger DC Blake Baker was his DC, along with Ephraim Banda (Safeties/Browns), who both had worked with Diaz since his days in Texas.
Though Diaz is thought to be blitz-centric in his approach, that just wasn’t the case at Miami. Overall, the Hurricanes had an average Blitz Rate (BR) of ~25%, with the peak coming in Diaz’s final year (30.3%). The Canes’ blitz patterns appeared on passing downs, with a three-year Passing Blitz Rate (PBR) of 43.6% (highwater = ‘21 at 51.8%). Diaz would finish fifth in the Power 5 in BR and PBR (PFF) in his final year.
During his tenure in Miami, Diaz mainly featured a coverage structure based around Cover 1, Cover 3, and Quarters (in that order). There was very little Cover 2. His blitz structures were mainly five-man pressures and only averaged a Sim Rate of 13.5%. When Diaz took the job at Penn State, he became much more aggressive on normal downs and shifted his split field coverage focus from Quarters to Cover 2.
In the past two years, the Nittany Lions have averaged a ~20% Cover 2 usage rate, compared to ~3% when Diaz was at Miami. Diaz’s Sim% more than doubled at 33.5%. His blitz rate sits over the 50% mark as well. For many, Diaz always seemed to have these high numbers, but they were only on passing downs. When Diaz took over the defense in Happy Valley, he started throwing heat on every down.
Last year, Penn State's defense finished with the #2 PBR in the Power 5, along with the ninth-highest Cover 1 rate and the third-highest Cover 2 rate. When blitzing, the Nittany Lions led the Power 5 in Cover 2 usage (20%); in contrast, they were 18th in Cover 3 usage (36%). Diaz still runs his Fire Zones, but since being fired in Miami, he’s added a Sim element and non-traditional Tampa 2s.
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