In case you missed it, former Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco was a guest on Jim Rome’s radio show this afternoon. It was a terrific opportunity for the new head coach of the UConn football team to get a national platform, and Diaco dazzled Rome with some of the things that made him such a favorite of Irish fans.
Rome’s website will have more details, but the interview was a greatest hits for Bobby D, who talked werewolves, energy vampires, the scorpion and the frog, and a few other gems.
But Diaco also talked about his departure from Notre Dame, giving us a good look at a young coach that Brian Kelly called, “the perfect man to lead (the Connecticut) football program into the future.”
Diaco discussed why he thought it was important to return to South Bend, and addressing the defense that he’s run for the past four seasons.
“I’ve been a part of these things in every chair now,” Diaco told Rome. “And the guy that disappears in the darkness, it really kind of goes against all the messages you’ve been trying to talk about up to that point.
“I packed my office in the middle of the day, so I saw everyone and they watched me pack my office and leave the building. I wanted that. I didn’t want to slink away in the middle of the night. I wanted to look at that team, and the defense specifically, and to look at them and tell them, that I loved them and that they gave me great pride and energy every day and that the messages about life and defending will be true no matter what. And that whatever person replaces Bob Diaco it’s going to be a better circumstance. Coach Kelly is going to improve this program and defense.”
In vintage Diaco fashion, he ended his interview with Rome by reciting a poem that he had the Irish defense memorize, “The Indispensable Man,” by Saxon White Kessinger.Sometime when you’re feeling important;
Sometime when your ego ‘s in bloom;
Sometime when you take it for granted,
You’re the best qualified in the room:
Sometime when you feel that your going,
Would leave an unfillable hole,
Just follow these simple instructions,
And see how they humble your soul.
Take a bucket and fill it with water,
Put your hand in it up to the wrist,
Pull it out and the hole that’s remaining,
Is a measure of how much you’ll be missed.
You can splash all you wish when you enter,
You may stir up the water galore,
But stop, and you’ll find that in no time,
It looks quite the same as before.
Is to do just the best that you can,
Be proud of yourself but remember,
There’s no indispensable man.
If you’ve got a spare 12 minutes, head over to JimRome.com and give the interview a listen.
