Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen is taking a bit longer than most expected to hire a new defensive coordinator, but it appears he has narrowed down his candidates to two and will be making a decision soon. His final choice will likely be between Middle Tennessee State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz and University of Oklahoma defensive ends coach Chris Wilson.
The man Mullen hires will replace Carl Torbush, who spent one year as defensive coordinator and was hired as part of Mullen’s first staff. Torbush left MSU shortly after the end of the season to take the same position at Kansas where he joined new Jayhawks’ head coach Turner Gill.
Diaz appears to be the leading candidate for the position, and he is considered one of the more up-and-coming defensive coaches in the NCAA after four successful seasons as a position coach at North Carolina State University and four record-breaking years as the defensive coordinator at MTSU.
Many Bulldog fans may remember MSU’s convincing 27-6 win over the Blue Raiders in October and assume the rest of their season was similar, but Diaz’s defense helped MTSU record the first ever 10-win season for a team in the SunBelt Conference, including a 32-31 regular-season win over the Maryland Terrapins and a 42-32 win versus Southern Miss in the New Orleans Bowl.
His defense led the SunBelt in interceptions (19), sacks (38) and opponent third and fourth-down conversions. The unit also finished in the top three in rushing, pass and total defense.
A high-energy coach, Diaz is known as a motivator and, most importantly, an aggressive play-caller who loves to put pressure on the quarterback, as evidenced by the 2006 season – his first year in Murfreesboro. In that season the Blue Raider defense racked up a then school-record 36 sacks and set the all-time MTSU mark with 96 tackles for loss.
Diaz also spent four years as a position coach and shared playcalling duties at North Carolina State University, where he coached linebackers in 2002-03. In 2004-05 Diaz was the safeties’ coach and special teams coordinator.
Wilson, on the other hand, began coaching at Oklahoma in 2005 in the same position he holds now, and the defensive ends coach was actually a four-year letterman as a linebacker for the Sooners 1988-1991, and still ranks in the top 20 for career tackles at OU.
Prior to coaching at Oklahoma, Wilson was the defensive line coach for the University of Colorado from 2000-04. The Buffs went to three bowl games during Wilson’s tenure, and in his final season the CU defensive line finished No. 15 nationally with 33 sacks, also good for No. 2 in the Big 12.
Wilson’s best season numbers-wise at OU came in 2007 when the Sooners’ defense recorded 32 sacks and sophomore defensive end Auston English finished top-15 nationally in sacks, despite missing three games.
In his time at Colorado and Oklahoma, Wilson has been a part of seven bowl games, including three Fiesta Bowl appearance (two with OU), and the 2009 BCS Championship between Oklahoma and the Florida Gators.
As a position coach since 1994, Wilson has coached the defensive line, defensive ends and linebackers, and has also served one year each as a defensive coordinator and a recruiting coordinator.
Whether Mullen chooses Diaz or Wilson, one thing is clear – the new defensive coordinator at Mississippi State will be someone who likes to attack and runs a high-energy, fast-paced defense. Pernell McPhee and the gang will be spending a hefty amount of time in opponents’ backfields next year.
One further and very possible option is Diaz and Wilson being hired as co-coordinators. The setup would make sense as Wilson has extensive experience with the defensive line, and Diaz is more experienced with the secondary and linebackers.