Miami head coach Manny Diaz has made a string of key changes on the defensive side of the ball during this offseason and on Monday, the Canes confirmed another A+ hire that should pay huge dividends next season.

It was announced that former Auburn LBs coach Travis Williams will be joining the Miami staff as the inside linebackers coach. Williams previously coached the Tigers from 2016-2020.

“We are thrilled to welcome Travis and his family to Miami,” Diaz said in a press release. “He has had tremendous success both playing and coaching the linebacker position and I’m excited about the knowledge and passion he will bring to our linebackers group.”

Williams replaces former DC Blake Baker, who recently accepted a job as LB coach at LSU.

Williams’ success at Auburn speaks volumes. The Tigers had the SEC leader in tackles in 2020 (Zakoby McClain with 113) as well as the 8th-leading tackler (Owen Pappoe with 93). Auburn also had top-14 scoring defenses from 2016-2018.

He’s also great success on the recruiting trail as he was able to pry Owen Pappoe away from in-state favorite Georgia when he was the top-ranked linebacker in the country in 2019.

What is amazing to me is that Manny Diaz was able to revamp a bulk of the defensive staff without paying any buyout money. CB coach Demarcus Van Dyke was promoted internally while Williams, DL coach Jess Simpson, and DB coach Travaris Robinson were essentially free agents. Miami landing Bob Shoop as an analyst is also a big addition with Shoop adding over 30+ years of experience as a defensive coach.

Diaz made a previous announcement that he would call the plays on defense in 2021 but I wouldn’t rule out hiring a prototypical defensive coordinator that would lessen his workload.

What are your thoughts? Leave a comment or tweet me (@PaulAustria_) or @SixthRingCanes. What do you think of the hirings? Do you think the Canes will be better on defense?