Shane Beamer raves about Dakereon Joyner's versatility

Dakereon Joyner has made plays as a receiver, quarterback and returner during his time at South Carolina.

The sixth-year senior could add running back to that list this fall.

Joyner spent time at running back this spring as Shane Beamer and the South Carolina staff continue to search for ways to get the playmaker involved. Beamer liked what he saw from Joyner during spring practices but noted that Joyner is still primarily a receiver.

“Dakereon is a guy that good things happen when the ball is in his hands, whether it’s running it, catching it, throwing it. There’s a lot of different things that we can do with him,” Beamer said. “So 1, Dakereon being able to do some stuff at running back is kind of the next step of some of the things we did with him last year – playing some quarterback. And the year before, also playing receiver. So he’s still a receiver. He was doing some things at running back, as well.”

Beamer met with Joyner in February and the two discussed how he would be used during his final season with the Gamecocks.

With Joyner already knowing the receiver position and the playbook as a receiver, Beamer encouraged Joyner to give running back a try this spring.

“He knows receiver. He’s been doing that since I’ve been the head football coach here. ‘Let’s experiment a little bit with just being natural with being able to play some running back as well,'” Beamer said of his conversation with Joyner. “With him, we’ve kind of told him we’ll go at his pace.”

Beamer believes Joyner will cause issues for opposing defenses due to his versatility.

When South Carolina is in its huddle, defensive coordinators and opposing players won’t know where Joyner is going to line up.

“I think it’ll present problems for defenses,” Beamer said. “Because here’s a guy that can line up at quarterback. Here’s a guy that can line up at receiver. Here’s a guy that can line up at running back. And just continuing to try to find ways to get him the ball.”

Joyner attempted 3 passes last season and was 3-for-3 for 101 yards and a touchdown. He also caught 8 passes for 120 yards and a score and ran the ball 12 times for 56 yards and two touchdowns.

Joyner ran the ball as a wildcat quarterback or on jet sweeps last season, and he will do that again in 2023, as well. But he is also likely to get some carries as a running back.

“He is a receiver. He’ll continue to work at some quarterback. But this is just something that we just wanted to experiment with a little bit, which can help us as we go into the season,” Beamer said.

“It gives us another body in that room, and some experience in that room, as well. Because that’s a young group.”