The Duke football program saw Mike Elko leave for the Texas A&M job after the Aggies moved on from Jimbo Fisher and gave him a huge buyout. Duke also saw quarterback Riley Leonard enter the transfer portal, and all signs point to him going to Notre Dame. Now, the Duke football program is reportedly zeroing in on their next head coach, and it looks like it could be Penn State defensive coordinator and former Miami HC Manny Diaz, per Pete Thamel of ESPN.

‘Sources: Penn State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz has emerged as the focus of Duke’s head coaching search. A decision is expected in the next 24 hours.'

Diaz was a head coach for the Miami Hurricanes from 2016 to 2021, and he posted a 21-15 record and went 16-9 ACC mark. In December 2018, Diaz was named as the head coach for Temple, but weeks later he decided to leave and return to Miami in a shocking turn of events.

After Diaz was fired by Miami in December 2021, he headed for Penn State and has worked wonders with the Nittany Lions defense. Now, he is expected to become the new head coach for the Duke football program as he returns to the ACC.

Diaz was replaced by Mario Cristobal at Miami, and now the two will face off against each other in ACC play. Unfortunately for Diaz, the roster won't look the same that it did in the past two seasons for Duke, but this is a terrific opportunity to get back into head coaching and it helps that he has familiarity with the ACC.