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After relieving Deke Adams of his duties in December, Ole Miss has done its due diligence with finding a suitable replacement, interviewing and vetting several candidates. And now, it appears that a replacement has been found.
As first reported by Football Scoop, Ole Miss offered the vacant defensive line position to SMU’s Randall Joyner and he is expected to accept and join Lane Kiffin and Co. in Oxford sooner rather than later. The Mustangs’ staffer coached the same group in Dallas the last two seasons after making his return in 2018. Before that, he was a graduate assistant at Hawaii and Ohio State.
During his time in Columbus, Ohio State went 23-4 and made an appearance in the CFP Semifinals in 2016 and won a Big Ten Championship and Cotton Bowl in 2017.
Once he took over things at SMU, the defensive line flourished. In 2019, Joyner’s group anchored a defense that ranked No. 1 in the FBS for sacks per game (3.92) and finished top three in tackles for loss (8.5).
The Rebels’ newest staffer has mad 247Sports’ 30under30 list not once, but twice, making the cut in 2018 and 2019. The Carollton, Tex. native is just 27 years-old, but is held in high regard in the business by many.
Joyner is considered a tremendous recruiter and is one of the youngest coaches on this list. Joyner, an SMU alumnus, did a two-year stint as a GA at Ohio State before returning to Dallas. There, he worked under Buckeye d-line coach Larry Johnson, considered one of the best in the business. Joyner took over full-time defensive line duties this offseason.
Also, the guy is very good at getting folks ready to run through a wall with his words.
My boy Bo @LetsGo_Bo5 getting them boys right! Honored to be friends with such a great motivator and leader. #FutureHCInWaiting pic.twitter.com/95UXWztS5p
— Jeremy Gray (@The2ndCoachGray) December 10, 2017
During his time in Columbus, Joyner learned quite a bit under Johnson, including how to recruit high-level talent. Here are just a few of the names that he helped sign during his time at Ohio State:
- 5-star SDE Joey Bosa
- 5-star WDE Chase Young
- 5-star SDE Zach Harrison
- 4-star DT Antwuan Jackson
- 4-star DT Taron Vincent
- 4-star SDE Tyler Friday
- 4-star WDE Jonathon Cooper
- 4-star DT Haskell Garrett
- 4-star SDE Noah Potter
Joyner played linebacker at SMU from 2010-13, playing in 50 games and registering 240 total tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, six forced fumbles, and four interceptions.