Diego García Miravete

Diego Leonardo García Miravete^[1] is a Mexican former gridiron football coach and player. He served as head coach of the Cóndores UNAM from 1976 to 1993 and amassed nine national championships. García Miravete also served as head coach of the Auténticos Tigres UANL, the Borregos Salvajes Toluca, and the Borregos Salvajes Santa Fe, as well as stints with the Cardinals Palermo and Corsari Palermo in Italy and the Badalona Drags in Spain. He played college football for the Pumas UNAM and the Cóndores UNAM, winning three national championships.

Growing up in Mexico City, García Miravete was exposed to football early since his father played the sport as a guard. As a child in 1952, he was taken by his father to the inaugural game played at the Estadio Olímpico Universitario, sparking his interest in the sport. García Miravete attended Escuela Nacional Preparatoria 5 for high school, where he first played organized football at the age of 15. However, he suffered a broken clavicle during his first training session and missed the entire season as a result. García Miravete grew from 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) to 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) ahead of the next season, eventually becoming a starter. He enrolled at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) School of Engineering and joined their team, Escorpiones Rojos, for the intermedia category (20 and under). However, soon afterwards, García Miravete switched to the School of Accounting's team, the Gallos, at the suggestion of legendary coach Manuel Neri Fernández, who coached the UNAM Liga Mayor (college) team. By his second year in intermedia in 1966, he was invited to join the Pumas Doradas in Liga Mayor. García Miravete always wanted to play quarterback, but was assigned to be a defensive end.^[2][3][4]

García Miravete played college football for the Pumas Doradas under Neri from 1966 to 1969 during a "golden age" of football in Mexico where the team enjoyed a national spotlight. "Games were on Saturdays at 4 p.m., the magic hour," he later reminisced. "Tickets would always sell out in just a couple days, and on Saturdays the seats started to be occupied at 10 a.m. ... The sport was an important center of attention." García Miravete helped his team win back-to-back national championships in his first two seasons before the 1968 season was cancelled due to widespread student protests and the resulting Tlatelolco massacre. The Pumas had trouble finding opponents to play in 1969 – resorting to an international schedule – and were split into three teams the following year.^[2][4][5]

Like many other ex-Pumas, García Miravete followed coach Neri to the newly-created Cóndores UNAM, where he played his final two seasons. Listed at 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) and 78 kg (172 lb), he helped the team win the national championship in 1970 and was chosen by his teammates as the team captain in 1971.^[2][6] Nevertheless, UNAM football games for all three teams were closely monitored by the government due to the sport's exceptional popularity among students and the university's central role in the protests. Furthermore, García Miravete contends, like many others, that rowdy spectators were planted in stadiums to cause trouble and "make the stadiums unattractive places to spend an afternoon" in an effort to crack down on the student movement. This marked the start of a decline in popularity for college football in Mexico.^[5] While in college, García Miravete was selected to represent the Mexican All-Stars in the Aztec Bowl against American teams in 1966, 1970, and 1971, with the game being cancelled from 1967 to 1969.^[2][7][8]

"The life of the campus was amazing. There were no big movements before, then suddenly everything was happening at UNAM. It was a privilege to be a part of it." –García Miravete on life at UNAM during the 1968 Mexican student movement^[5]

After his playing career, García Miravete worked two years for Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma Brewery before he was asked by his former coach, Manuel Neri Fernández, to return to the Cóndores UNAM in an assistant coaching role in 1973. He was promoted from defensive line coach to the head coaching position in 1976 after Neri Fernández accepted a job at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM). García Miravete was prepared to resign and follow Neri Fernández to UAM, but was asked by his players to stay and lead the team.^[2][10] As head coach, he revamped the coaching staff, implemented new schemes, updated the logo and uniforms, and instituted team rules to begin building a distinct culture. In his coaching debut, García Miravete guided the Cóndores to a surprise 24–24 tie with the defending champion Pieles Rojas de Acción Deportiva. He also led the combined UNAM selection to a blowout win over the combined IPN selection in the annual Clásico Poli-Universidad and was named the ONEFA Coach of the Year for the first time.^[11][12]

In his second season at the helm in 1977, García Miravete decided to contact the University of Tennessee coaching staff due to the fact that their new head coach, Johnny Majors, had led Pittsburgh to a national title the year before. He got in touch with Tennessee assistant Joe Avezzano, who knew some Spanish and invited the Cóndores coaching staff to Knoxville, Tennessee, to observe their spring practices. The UNAM coaches went back to Tennessee the next two springs as well and returned the favor by twice hosting the Tennessee coaches at their own spring practices in Mexico City. García Miravete and his coaching staff cultivated such a strong relationship with Avezzano that, when he was hired as the Oregon State head coach in 1980, the Cóndores coaches attended spring training in Corvallis, Oregon, that year instead of making a fourth straight trip to Knoxville. "They came to work," said Avezzano of García Miravete's staff that spring. "They're very organized, very enthusiastic, and a very knowledgeable group of young men. Diego is a hell of a coach, and I'll tell you this: we don't know anything about enthusiasm compared to this team."^[3][13][14] García Miravete went on to visit coaches like Don James at Washington, Jackie Sherrill at Texas A&M, Gary Barnett at Colorado, June Jones at SMU, and Lou Holtz at Notre Dame,^[15][16] and credits Avezzano for opening the doors for him.^[2]

García Miravete led the Cóndores UNAM to nine ONEFA national championships,^[12] building a dynasty known for "their option attack, an aggressive, hard-hitting defense and a deep and talented squad".^[10] They won three in a row from 1978 to 1980 and four in a row from 1983 to 1986, followed by back-to-back titles in 1990 and 1991.^[12] In an interview with the El Paso Times in 1987, García Miravete spoke about the keys to the program's success: "sound organization, friendly atmosphere, good image and a winning record... that's what attracts young men to our program."^[18] He opposed player recruitment and athletic scholarships, saying that it "would open the door to another type of values."^[9]

García Miravete and the team developed the mantra "no puedo dejar de ganar" (I cannot stop winning). He explained that it meant that they would enjoy championships only on the day of the final and be ready to return to offseason practices the following January with the goal of getting even better.^[19] At the same time, García Miravete encouraged his players to unwind in the lead-up to gameday, such as with team volleyball matches the day before or listening to rock and roll in the locker room pre-game. "Players always get uptight just before a game," he said. "One solution I found was that because they are happy, young men, I let them play music, sing and dance."^[20]

In 1992, García Miravete was described as "one of the more popular sports figures in Mexico" by the Chadron Record ahead of a game against Chadron State.^[21]

After leaving the Cóndores following a poor 1993 season,^[12] García Miravete served as head coach of Italian team Cardinals Palermo in 1995, leading them to a playoff berth.^[22][23] He returned to Mexico later that year and took the reins of the Auténticos Tigres UANL for five seasons from 1995 to 1999,^[24] resigning after compiling an overall record of 17–23.^[25] In 2000, García Miravete served as head coach of the Badalona Drags in Spain; the team signed eight Mexican players and competed in the 14th Eurobowl under his direction.^[26] Later that year, he was hired as head coach of the Borregos Salvajes Toluca, who had just won promotion to the top-tier Conferencia de los 10 Grandes. García Miravete led the program to five straight playoff appearances from 2001 to 2005, but they lost in the semifinals each time. In six seasons at the helm, he directed the team to a 33–21 record.^[27] García Miravete resigned following the 2005 season.^[28]

García Miravete returned to Italy in 2006 as head coach of the Corsari Palermo. He then served as an assistant for the Linces UVM under head coach Rafael Duk from 2007 to 2009.^[29][30] Finally, he was the head coach of the Borregos Salvajes Campus Santa Fe from 2010 to 2014, serving in the role for five seasons.^[2]

In 2018, García Miravete attempted to start a football program at the Autonomous University of Aguascalientes. Despite starting the project at the invitation of the school's administration, it was scrapped after a month. García Miravete stayed in the area, however, to help a former Cóndores UNAM player who was coaching a youth team called the Sharks de Aguascalientes.^[2][31]

García Miravete served as head coach of the Mexican All-Stars in the Aztec Bowl in 1984, 1986, 1990, and 1991, registering wins over Tarleton State in 1984 and Southwestern Oklahoma State in 1991.^[7][32] He also led the Mexico junior national team at the first three editions of the NFL Global Junior Championship in 1997,^[33] 1998,^[34] and 1999.^[35]

García Miravete was named head coach of the Mexico national university team for the 2014 World University Championship held in Sweden.^[36] However, he declined the opportunity due to prior commitments and was replaced by Horacio García.^[37]

As a college football head coach, García Miravete won nine national championships, tying legendary coach Roberto "Tapatío" Méndez for the most in Mexican history. The record was tied by Jacinto Licea the following year and was eventually surpassed by Frank González.^[38] García Miravete was named by González as one of his three coaching idols (alongside Licea and Manuel Neri Fernández)^[39] and was called the Vince Lombardi of Mexican college football by Joe Avezzano.^[16] Ahead of the 2022 ONEFA season, at the 95th anniversary celebration of UNAM football, García Miravete was honored along with Licea and González as the winningest coaches in Mexican college football history.^[40]

García Miravete is a member of the Mexican Hall of Fame of American Football.^[41] In 2010, he was awarded the Premio Luchador Olmeca by the Confederación Deportiva Mexicana.^[42]

While in college, García Miravete was an employee of Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma Brewery, designing the packaging.^[2] During his time as head coach of the Cóndores, he served as a full-time professor at UNAM while supervising youth football leagues year-round.^[9] García Miravete married in 1968 and had a son that year.^[2] He coached two of his sons in football: Diego and César.^[43][44]

Nicknames for García Miravete include Lapizote (big pencil) and Flaco (skinny one).^[6][12] His favorite NFL team is the Dallas Cowboys.^[2]