Not even 24 hours removed from allowing the most rushing yards in school history, Texas fired defensive coordinator Manny Diaz, the school announced Sunday.
"Our performance on defense last night was unacceptable, and we need to change that," Longhorns head coach Mack Brown said in a statement announcing the change.
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BYU had 550 rushing yards in a 40-21 humbling of Texas on Saturday, with Cougars quarterback Taysom Hill accounting for 259 yards and three touchdowns. The Texas defense was frequently out of position, and missed numerous tackles on those occasions where it was in the right spot.
Diaz was brought to Texas in 2011 as part of a complete overhaul of Brown's coaching staff and delivered immediate results. Texas finished No. 6 nationally in rush defense and No. 11 in total defense, but regressed badly last season with a matador defense that gave up 40-plus points on four different occasions.
The return of defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat and linebacker Jordan Hicks from injury and an off-season of working against the new up-tempo offense in practice were supposed to be a panacea for Texas' woes, but that notion was run over, repeatedly, in Provo, Utah.
Greg Robinson, who served as Texas' co-defensive coordinator in 2004, will replace Diaz. Robinson had been hired in July as an analyst for the football program.
Robinson spent 14 years coaching in the NFL, serving as defensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Broncos and New York Jets and was with the Broncos for their back-to-back Super Bowl wins in 1997-98.
Robinson inherits plenty of talent, including Jeffcoat, Hicks and cornerback Quandre Diggs among the notables, but Texas hosts upstart Mississippi this Saturday. The Rebels have a host of young playmakers, led by running back Jeff Scott and wide receivers Donte Moncrief and Laquon Treadwell, to say nothing of the wide-open offenses Texas will face in Big 12 play.
Unless Robinson can deliver an immediate overhaul of the Texas defense, Diaz's dismissal might be remembered as an attempted stopgap on the path to Brown's exit.
Follow Dan Greenspan on Twitter @DanGreenspan.
