Reports: Nebraska to make former Notre Dame assistant Bob Diaco new defensive coordinator

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Nebraska reportedly has its new defensive coordinator.

Bob Diaco, who was most recently the head coach at Connecticut and prior to that was the defensive coordinator at Notre Dame, will be the new man in charge of the Huskers' defense, per multiple reports Friday night.

Nebraska is in need of a new defensive coordinator after Mike Riley surprisingly announced earlier this week that Mark Banker wouldn't return to the Huskers for the 2017 season. Banker worked as Riley's defensive coordinator for a total of 17 seasons at three different stops: the San Diego Chargers, Oregon State and Nebraska.

Diaco's last effort as a defensive coordinator was a mighty impressive one. He helmed that side of the ball for the Fighting Irish for four seasons, including when they went 12-0 and reached the national championship game in the 2012 season. Two seasons later, he took over as the head coach at Connecticut and led the Huskies for the past three seasons prior to his dismissal last month. In those three campaigns, Diaco posted an 11-26 record, reaching just one bowl game.

The Nebraska defense could use some fire. The Huskers ranked in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten this past season, sixth in the conference in total defense (allowing an average of 363.7 yards a game) and seventh in the conference in scoring defense (allowing an average of 23.9 points per game). The Huskers were better at defending the run than defending the pass, ranking sixth against the run and 10th against the pass.

It's a return to the Big Ten for Diaco, who played for Hayden Fry at Iowa and was a grad assistant under Fry for two seasons in the 1990s.

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