Manny Diaz Says ‘Canes Can Compete for the Playoff in 2019

Head coach Manny Diaz starred on ESPN’s ‘car wash,’ a ritual which features college football coaches on multiple platforms on the channel, giving them an opportunity to speak about their program on the largest stage.

It was on-air with Golic and Wingo that Diaz made the claim.

“There’s no doubt… We know this: if we can win our division, which is highly competitive, we know will be in Charlotte, we have a good idea who will be waiting for us in Charlotte if we get there… We know that we outscore that team, we will be in the playoff and we know that because we looked at them eye-to-eye two years ago. Now we flinched [in that game]. We didn’t play very well, but our guys at least have seen that setting, they understand what it takes to perform on that level.”

It’s a massive expectation for a team with many new faces on staff — but it’s the level of competition Miami should always be playing at.

While there are question marks surrounding the offense especially, the Hurricanes may end up being favored in 11 of 12 contests in 2019. However, in a preseason ACC poll, it was predicted that the ‘Canes will finish second in the Coastal, behind Virginia.

The prediction shows that the hype surrounding this team is well-known — but not everyone is a believer.

Despite the non-believers, the Hurricanes should still have a championship-caliber defense, as well as a deeper roster than previous years. Not only is the roster deep, but it’s now considered championship-caliber by the ‘Blue Chip’ ratio. This means that the talent is there, but it has to be proven by wins and success.

All of the question marks, doubts, and bold predictions put a huge amount of pressure on Miami’s season opener against Florida. Of course, their playoff dreams aren’t over if they lose the contest, but a victory in Orlando would give the program a massive boost — necessary for the kind of perfect season that Diaz spoke about.