PASADENA, Calif. - What a difference a year makes. Last year, Manny Diaz was the new face on the Penn State coaching staff, becoming the new defensive coordinator and linebackers coach for the Nittany Lions.
Fast forward to the present day, Penn State is preparing for its much-anticipated matchup against Utah in the 2023 Rose Bowl. The defensive play all season long is one of the reasons why the Nittany Lions earned a trip to Pasadena.
Penn State's defense has put the college football landscape on notice as one of the best in the nation, with ten different Nittany Lions receiving 2022 All-Big Ten Defensive Honors. The defense ranks among the nation's best in scoring, yards allowed, sacks, turnovers, and red zone effectiveness.
Diaz's impact has extended beyond the X's and O's. Linebacker Curtis Jacobs believes that his presence has established a new identity for the defense.
"I will say from the attitude that he brings into practice every day, the attitude that he brings when we are watching film, he brought an aggressiveness and a swagger into our defense that wasn't missing, but it needed to be addressed," Jacobs said. "I feel like that took us to the next level as a defense."
Through watching film and going to battle as brothers on the gridiron, Jacobs noticed another element that has given the defense an advantage.
"Coach Manny bringing in the idea of trust," said Jacobs. "100% across the board, I trust every guy on the defense and it's because of Coach Manny."
As the season continued, the swagger and trust translated to plenty of success for Penn State. defensive end Adisa Isaac. The redshirt junior recorded a sack in three of the team's final four games this season. He attributes the unit's growth to their camaraderie.
"It's the chemistry you build throughout each game. You could just see every game we were building to the form we're at right now," Isaac said. "As the year went on, we started gelling together and it gave us a lot of success."
In just two days, Isaac, Jacobs, and the Penn State defense hope to showcase their defensive development in the 2023 Rose Bowl Game. It's one final opportunity to make life miserable for the opposition.
"Attacking. Dominant. Fearless," Isaac described his defense's identity. "I feel like we're one of the top defenses for sure."
Kalen King