Jay Joyner will have the interim tag removed from his title and therefore will become the next head men’s basketball coach at North Carolina A&T State University, as announced by Director of Athletics Earl M. Hilton III on Monday.
Joyner, who was previously the Aggies associate head coach, took over the head coaching role on an interim basis after Cy Alexander resigned on Jan. 29, 2016. The Aggies are 5-4 overall and finished 5-3 in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play after Joyner took over. He will lead the sixth-seeded Aggies into the MEAC tournament today as they face 11th-seed Coppin State at approximately 8 p.m., at the Norfolk Scope Arena in Virginia.
“Coach Joyner’s energy and passion along with his ability to get his players to give their best effort on the floor each night is what we’re looking for in a head coach,” said Hilton. “I did not think it fair to evaluate coach Joyner on wins and losses because when he took the position there were only nine games remaining on the schedule.
I did want to, however, see how the players reacted to his leadership, and how they conducted themselves publicly. I am pleased with the job he is doing, and I thought it was important to remove interim off his title to help him and his staff recruit effectively.”
Joyner, 41, has become a head coach for the first time at a four-year institution. He played basketball for Alexander at S.C. State from 1993-96. Before joining Alexander at N.C. A&T as his associate head coach in 2012, Joyner spent three seasons as the head men’s basketball coach at Columbia State Community College (Tenn.). Joyner led the Chargers to a 61-23 record and two Tennessee Community College Athletic Association regular-season titles.
Joyner holds a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Middle Tennessee State. He is a native of Amityville, N.Y. He and his wife Chartarra have three children.
“Obviously I’m excited because this is a great opportunity,” said Joyner. “North Carolina A&T has a rich history and a great tradition in men’s basketball. It was voted one of the top 100 men’s basketball programs of all time at one point. For Chancellor Harold L. Martin and Mr. Hilton to trust me to lead a program of North Carolina A&T’s caliber is humbling.”
