Shortly after Florida State fired Mike Norvell on Sunday, Nov. 1, Manny Diaz's name was thrown into the mix among potential replacement options in Tallahassee.
The Duke football coach saw those so-called "internet rumors." He also addressed them with his team in Durham, North Carolina, one day after the Blue Devils picked up a 47-2 win over Boston College to move to 6-2 on the season.
"I addressed the team last night, I made it pretty clear, really, really happy here," Diaz said during his news conference on Monday, Nov. 2. "Love being here, love going to work here every day. Anything we focus on other than finding a way to beat NC State is a distraction.
Internet rumors are going to be Internet rumors.
"I told coaches and players we're the same, right? Everybody thinks our players are going to go somewhere else, right? So that's just the cost of success, which I'd rather have than the alternative."
Diaz, an FSU graduate who served as a graduate assistant for legendary Seminoles head coach Bobby Bowden in 1998-99, has been largely successful in his second go-around as a head coach at Duke after getting fired after three seasons in his first head coaching job at Miami.
In his three seasons in Durham, Diaz has led Duke to a 24-11 overall record, including an ACC championship last season. The Blue Devils' win over Boston College last weekend made them bowl eligible for the third consecutive season under Diaz.
Duke's offense currently ranks seventh in the ACC in scoring (32.0 points per game), while its defense is first in scoring in the conference, holding opponents to 14.3 points per game.
USA TODAY Sports' John Brice and Paul Myerberg wrote that Diaz should be "seen as the early leader for the opening" in Tallahassee on their candidate replacement board for Norvell's former position. Asked why he addressed the "elephant in the room" with his team on Nov. 1, Diaz said the program is a big believer in addressing things that people sometimes don't want to bring up.
"If they're thinking about it, might as well talk about it," Diaz said.
Duke will go for its 25th overall win under Diaz on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 12:30 p.m. ET with a quick trip over to NC State.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why Duke's Manny Diaz waved off ties to Florida State opening as 'internet rumors'
