ViAggie wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 1:41 pm

Interesting

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 1:15 pm

FWIW, I follow Miami very closely and subscribe to one of their premium boards, and their insiders think Banda taking the DC job here is a done deal and are surprised it hasn’t been announced.

I guess he was hospitalized a couple times briefly with Covid and the last month was pretty difficult for him so maybe that slowed things down a bit though he was on the sidelines for their bowl so he appears back to good health.

I haven’t heard differently on the USU side but thought some might be interested that the other side of the equation thinks it’s happening too.

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 3:07 pm

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 1:15 pm

FWIW, I follow Miami very closely and subscribe to one of their premium boards, and their insiders think Banda taking the DC job here is a done deal and are surprised it hasn’t been announced.

I guess he was hospitalized a couple times briefly with Covid and the last month was pretty difficult for him so maybe that slowed things down a bit though he was on the sidelines for their bowl so he appears back to good health.

I haven’t heard differently on the USU side but thought some might be interested that the other side of the equation thinks it’s happening too.

Thank you very much for sharing this. I've been scouring canesinsight.com for Banda news, but, I haven't seen anything Banda related lately. As an Aggie/Miami fan, would you be excited to have Banda here?

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 12:55 am

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 3:07 pm

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 1:15 pm

FWIW, I follow Miami very closely and subscribe to one of their premium boards, and their insiders think Banda taking the DC job here is a done deal and are surprised it hasn’t been announced.

I guess he was hospitalized a couple times briefly with Covid and the last month was pretty difficult for him so maybe that slowed things down a bit though he was on the sidelines for their bowl so he appears back to good health.

I haven’t heard differently on the USU side but thought some might be interested that the other side of the equation thinks it’s happening too.

Thank you very much for sharing this. I've been scouring canesinsight.com for Banda news, but, I haven't seen anything Banda related lately. As an Aggie/Miami fan, would you be excited to have Banda here?

This is a great question and I have thought about it quite a bit. I think my answer is, yes, I would be excited to have him here. This is a bit long but good background on why I like the system generally, but it has issues, and how Banda fits in.

When Al Golden coached Miami, he brought a 2-gap 3-4 defense that played a lot of zone coverage with his protege, Mark Donofrio, as DC. This defense was a disaster at Miami. Their recruiting base has a ton of long, athletic DEs and his system put a ton of weight on guys and required them to play slow. No DL wanted to play there and it is a system that requires exceptional DL. They were consistently near the bottom of the country in yards per play, sacks, TFLs, and turnovers. It was a really bad schematic fit for the talent and fanbase.

Richt comes in and hires Diaz and he immediately implements the old Miami 4-3 front like Jimmy Johnson developed with 1 gap assignments. His system is a lot like the FSU system in the 90s. The DEs have 1 job and that is to get upfield and LBs are asked to flow into gaps to try and make plays in the backfield. It can be devastating if they are getting pressure but it asks a lot of the LBs because the DEs aren't necessarily gap sound by design. So if you have slow LBs or ones that lack instincts, then there can be some big gaps.

For most of Diaz's tenure, they have had solid LBs (Shaq Quartermann and Mike Pinckney namely). But this year, they lost those guys and their LB play was awful. If you watch their game against UNC, you see their DEs shoot up the field, but the LBs didn't fill at all and that counter play killed them because the LBs flowed to try and blow the play up and left huge gaps on the weak side.

Until this year, the Diaz system had been a really good fit and they would have had some really good teams if their offense had cooperated. However, really good offenses can eat the system up especially if they can establish the run.

As you can imagine, the system also asks a lot of the safeties because they have to fill in where the LBs miss or leave gaps and they also have to be responsible for deep coverage (they play a ton of 2 high safety). The system is a dream for DEs and certain LBs and really tough for safeties.

Enter Banda. He gets some criticism as safeties coach but I think he has done an ok job there. He is an excellent recruiter, very high energy and his players love him. I think he would be a good fit here at the present time for those reasons. My concerns are that, he only knows the Diaz system. He has followed him everywhere (Texas, Miss. St., and Miami). I am not sure I love the system for USU. Miami has a really good DL (they may have 3 DEs go in the first 2 rounds of the draft) and a lot of depth there (15-17 guys). It is tough to have that DL depth at USU. On the plus side, it creates a ton of havoc around the line of scrimmage and we will force more turnovers, get more sacks, and more TFLs.

Part of Diaz's philosophy is that, in modern CFB, teams are going to score 28+ points and it is really tough to keep teams below that so you need to hit big plays on defense to kill drives and don't give up big pass plays. I think that is probably right, but teams with better talent that won't be susceptible to allowing those big defensive plays could do damage on us.

Miami fans really hate the current DC, Blake Baker, and I think with good reason. He relies a ton on zone coverage which is pretty soft and allows teams to avoid our pass rush because they can get the ball out quickly and generally has a poor feel for situational calls. Their CB coach, Mike Rumph, is a dreadful recruiter. The cornerback talent leaving South Florida the last 5 years is astonishing. As a Miami fan, I think I like Banda leaving because it forces a bit of a shakeup on the defensive staff that is necessary, but if they were to fire everyone on that side of the ball but keep one guy, I would keep Banda primarily for his recruiting.

So overall, I generally like the Diaz system and philosophy, but it needs some tweaks to be more gap sound IMO. If Banda brings that system and we can get enough talented defensive players in the front 7 to handle it, I think we will really enjoy it as a fanbase. It would look a lot like Orlando or Patterson but out of a 4 man front. They have a "striker" position which is essentially a big safety instead of a SLB so the personnel would look a bit like the 3-3-5 but the edge in the 3-3-5 would have his hand in the dirt and be a bit bigger than Henninger for example.

But, it could look like a square peg in a round hole if we can't find the players. Also, don't be fooled by his Co-DC title. When Diaz left for Temple, Richt named Banda and a guy named Jon Patke as Co-DCs. Miami fans thought this was a disaster and it was pretty obvious Richt was checked out because he retired like 2 days later. When Diaz came back, he hired Baker over those guys but Banda kept his title and pay bump. He does not call the defense at all and, as far as I know, has never called the defense. He is almost certainly taking a pay cut to be our DC (I have been told he makes over $500,000 right now) so he must want to grow and see what he can do.

Anyway, long response to a simple question but that is my view of Banda and what we might be getting, pros and cons. Overall, I like the hire but am not devastated to see him leave Miami.

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 12:55 am

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 3:07 pm

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 1st, 2021, 1:15 pm

FWIW, I follow Miami very closely and subscribe to one of their premium boards, and their insiders think Banda taking the DC job here is a done deal and are surprised it hasn’t been announced.

I guess he was hospitalized a couple times briefly with Covid and the last month was pretty difficult for him so maybe that slowed things down a bit though he was on the sidelines for their bowl so he appears back to good health.

I haven’t heard differently on the USU side but thought some might be interested that the other side of the equation thinks it’s happening too.

Thank you very much for sharing this. I've been scouring canesinsight.com for Banda news, but, I haven't seen anything Banda related lately. As an Aggie/Miami fan, would you be excited to have Banda here?

This is a great question and I have thought about it quite a bit. I think my answer is, yes, I would be excited to have him here. This is a bit long but good background on why I like the system generally, but it has issues, and how Banda fits in.

When Al Golden coached Miami, he brought a 2-gap 3-4 defense that played a lot of zone coverage with his protege, Mark Donofrio, as DC. This defense was a disaster at Miami. Their recruiting base has a ton of long, athletic DEs and his system put a ton of weight on guys and required them to play slow. No DL wanted to play there and it is a system that requires exceptional DL. They were consistently near the bottom of the country in yards per play, sacks, TFLs, and turnovers. It was a really bad schematic fit for the talent and fanbase.

Richt comes in and hires Diaz and he immediately implements the old Miami 4-3 front like Jimmy Johnson developed with 1 gap assignments. His system is a lot like the FSU system in the 90s. The DEs have 1 job and that is to get upfield and LBs are asked to flow into gaps to try and make plays in the backfield. It can be devastating if they are getting pressure but it asks a lot of the LBs because the DEs aren't necessarily gap sound by design. So if you have slow LBs or ones that lack instincts, then there can be some big gaps.

For most of Diaz's tenure, they have had solid LBs (Shaq Quartermann and Mike Pinckney namely). But this year, they lost those guys and their LB play was awful. If you watch their game against UNC, you see their DEs shoot up the field, but the LBs didn't fill at all and that counter play killed them because the LBs flowed to try and blow the play up and left huge gaps on the weak side.

Until this year, the Diaz system had been a really good fit and they would have had some really good teams if their offense had cooperated. However, really good offenses can eat the system up especially if they can establish the run.

As you can imagine, the system also asks a lot of the safeties because they have to fill in where the LBs miss or leave gaps and they also have to be responsible for deep coverage (they play a ton of 2 high safety). The system is a dream for DEs and certain LBs and really tough for safeties.

Enter Banda. He gets some criticism as safeties coach but I think he has done an ok job there. He is an excellent recruiter, very high energy and his players love him. I think he would be a good fit here at the present time for those reasons. My concerns are that, he only knows the Diaz system. He has followed him everywhere (Texas, Miss. St., and Miami). I am not sure I love the system for USU. Miami has a really good DL (they may have 3 DEs go in the first 2 rounds of the draft) and a lot of depth there (15-17 guys). It is tough to have that DL depth at USU. On the plus side, it creates a ton of havoc around the line of scrimmage and we will force more turnovers, get more sacks, and more TFLs.

Part of Diaz's philosophy is that, in modern CFB, teams are going to score 28+ points and it is really tough to keep teams below that so you need to hit big plays on defense to kill drives and don't give up big pass plays. I think that is probably right, but teams with better talent that won't be susceptible to allowing those big defensive plays could do damage on us.

Miami fans really hate the current DC, Blake Baker, and I think with good reason. He relies a ton on zone coverage which is pretty soft and allows teams to avoid our pass rush because they can get the ball out quickly and generally has a poor feel for situational calls. Their CB coach, Mike Rumph, is a dreadful recruiter. The cornerback talent leaving South Florida the last 5 years is astonishing. As a Miami fan, I think I like Banda leaving because it forces a bit of a shakeup on the defensive staff that is necessary, but if they were to fire everyone on that side of the ball but keep one guy, I would keep Banda primarily for his recruiting.

So overall, I generally like the Diaz system and philosophy, but it needs some tweaks to be more gap sound IMO. If Banda brings that system and we can get enough talented defensive players in the front 7 to handle it, I think we will really enjoy it as a fanbase. It would look a lot like Orlando or Patterson but out of a 4 man front. They have a "striker" position which is essentially a big safety instead of a SLB so the personnel would look a bit like the 3-3-5 but the edge in the 3-3-5 would have his hand in the dirt and be a bit bigger than Henninger for example.

But, it could look like a square peg in a round hole if we can't find the players. Also, don't be fooled by his Co-DC title. When Diaz left for Temple, Richt named Banda and a guy named Jon Patke as Co-DCs. Miami fans thought this was a disaster and it was pretty obvious Richt was checked out because he retired like 2 days later. When Diaz came back, he hired Baker over those guys but Banda kept his title and pay bump. He does not call the defense at all and, as far as I know, has never called the defense. He is almost certainly taking a pay cut to be our DC (I have been told he makes over $500,000 right now) so he must want to grow and see what he can do.

Anyway, long response to a simple question but that is my view of Banda and what we might be getting, pros and cons. Overall, I like the hire but am not devastated to see him leave Miami.

GameFAQSAggie wrote:

CaptainChaos wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 1:44 pm

Banda as a secondary guy would make sense if you already have a guy like Maile to work with the D line. I wonder if this was the original plan and they are sticking with Banda and giving him the reigns because of how things worked out with Frank? Just speculation...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would think that to get someone to go from Miami to Utah State, you would have to give them a coordinator position and that they aren't going to just go from Miami position coach to Utah State position coach. And given that the Frank fiasco unfolded just one day after BA accepted our head job, it's highly unlikely BA had any thought about keeping Frank.

I do remember something like this happening when Brent Guy was hired. He brought in someone intending to just have him be a linebackers coach, but then gave him the DC job when he couldn't get others for DC.

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 7:55 pm

Rumor on Miami boards is Banda might bring Demarcus Van Dyke to be the cornerbacks coach.

He has been an off-field staffer for Miami for a couple years and was a pretty good player there. Would be his first on-field coaching job but I think he would do a good job FWIW.

CaptainChaos wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 3:52 pm

GameFAQSAggie wrote:

CaptainChaos wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 1:44 pm

Banda as a secondary guy would make sense if you already have a guy like Maile to work with the D line. I wonder if this was the original plan and they are sticking with Banda and giving him the reigns because of how things worked out with Frank? Just speculation...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would think that to get someone to go from Miami to Utah State, you would have to give them a coordinator position and that they aren't going to just go from Miami position coach to Utah State position coach. And given that the Frank fiasco unfolded just one day after BA accepted our head job, it's highly unlikely BA had any thought about keeping Frank.

I do remember something like this happening when Brent Guy was hired. He brought in someone intending to just have him be a linebackers coach, but then gave him the DC job when he couldn't get others for DC.

It could be that Banda was still in the plans to be the defensive guy and call the plays. At most it would mean keeping Frank as co-coordinator which wouldn’t make it a lateral move for Banda because he would gain play calling duties which sounds like it was important to him.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Intermeddler wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 7:55 pm

Rumor on Miami boards is Banda might bring Demarcus Van Dyke to be the cornerbacks coach.

He has been an off-field staffer for Miami for a couple years and was a pretty good player there. Would be his first on-field coaching job but I think he would do a good job FWIW.

Sl7vk wrote:

CaptainChaos wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 3:52 pm

GameFAQSAggie wrote:

CaptainChaos wrote: ↑

January 2nd, 2021, 1:44 pm

Banda as a secondary guy would make sense if you already have a guy like Maile to work with the D line. I wonder if this was the original plan and they are sticking with Banda and giving him the reigns because of how things worked out with Frank? Just speculation...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would think that to get someone to go from Miami to Utah State, you would have to give them a coordinator position and that they aren't going to just go from Miami position coach to Utah State position coach. And given that the Frank fiasco unfolded just one day after BA accepted our head job, it's highly unlikely BA had any thought about keeping Frank.

I do remember something like this happening when Brent Guy was hired. He brought in someone intending to just have him be a linebackers coach, but then gave him the DC job when he couldn't get others for DC.

It could be that Banda was still in the plans to be the defensive guy and call the plays. At most it would mean keeping Frank as co-coordinator which wouldn’t make it a lateral move for Banda because he would gain play calling duties which sounds like it was important to him.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Dear god, I hope you are wrong about any thought of keeping Frank around.

aggiefanatic wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 11:32 am

Some updates on coaching staff. @aggies22 can you confirm?

aggies22 wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:01 pm

aggiefanatic wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 11:32 am

Some updates on coaching staff. @aggies22 can you confirm?

I named Banda as the DC candidate three weeks ago. It looks like my sources were correct.

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:14 pm

aggies22 wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:01 pm

aggiefanatic wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 11:32 am

Some updates on coaching staff. @aggies22 can you confirm?

I named Banda as the DC candidate three weeks ago. It looks like my sources were correct.

Anyone have information on Zuckerman and Devine?

Sl7vk wrote:

aggies22 wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:01 pm

aggiefanatic wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 11:32 am

Some updates on coaching staff. @aggies22 can you confirm?

I named Banda as the DC candidate three weeks ago. It looks like my sources were correct.

Anyone have information on Zuckerman and Devine?

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:35 pm

Miami forum going crazy. 26 pages of posts since this morning:

https://www.canesinsight.com/threads/ba ... st.167362/

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:57 pm

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:35 pm

Miami forum going crazy. 26 pages of posts since this morning:

https://www.canesinsight.com/threads/ba ... st.167362/

I'm trying to decipher their board. Who's the coach they refer to as DVD?!?!?

slcagg wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:15 pm

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:14 pm

aggies22 wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:01 pm

aggiefanatic wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 11:32 am

Some updates on coaching staff. @aggies22 can you confirm?

I named Banda as the DC candidate three weeks ago. It looks like my sources were correct.

Anyone have information on Zuckerman and Devine?

I also saw a Miami article stating van dyke as the corners coach as well.

We are going to be targeting Florida as a recruiting spot I think.

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:57 pm

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 12:35 pm

Miami forum going crazy. 26 pages of posts since this morning:

https://www.canesinsight.com/threads/ba ... st.167362/

I'm trying to decipher their board. Who's the coach they refer to as DVD?!?!?

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 1:26 pm

Sounds like DVD is coming to be the CB coach. That's what I'm getting from that catastrophic Hurricanes thread.

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 1:51 pm

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

January 3rd, 2021, 1:26 pm

Sounds like DVD is coming to be the CB coach. That's what I'm getting from that catastrophic Hurricanes thread.

I was getting out of it that they think he’ll be their CB coach, maybe.

But, I’m only on page 11. Lots more to read so maybe they change their tune lol