Dakereon Joyner sat in a hallway in the bowels of Bank of America Stadium, soaking in the first quiet moment over the last four hours.

He was minutes removed from the Duke’s Mayo Bowl—minutes after starting at quarterback, completing every pass and throwing for 160 yards en route to bowl MVP—and finally had time to think and, most importantly, reflect.

Reflect on a frustratingly long and winding four years that culminated Thursday in his best performance in a Gamecock uniform.

“This was a dream come true. This is all I ever dreamed of. As a kid growing up I always dreamed of this moment and this moment finally came. I was prepared for it,” he said. “I have a praying family. They kept me going and kept me pushing forward.”

A testament to perseverance and fortitude, Joyner could have easily transferred when he lost the back up job to Jake Bentley before the 2019 season.

He could have easily transferred many times over as he bounced from receiver back to quarterback then back full-time to receiver between three different position coaches and a regime change.

But he didn’t, and it led to him standing on a stage with a bowl champions shirt draped over his shoulder pads and lifting the MVP trophy over his head.

Joyner was obviously emotional—breaking down in tears in the aftermath and pandemonium once the clock hit zero—in what was the magnum opus of his Gamecock career.

“Everyone knows my story. Things weren’t going my way and I was trying to figure out my position and figure a lot out,” Joyner said. “Coach (Justin) Stepp came in and even he told me every coach told him not great things about me in terms of my athletic ability and what position I play. Coach didn’t listen to it. He’s a lifesaver to me, and I think he’d say the same thing I am to him. It’s very mutual. I love him to death.”

Joyner, a South Carolina native, stuck it out and dove headfirst into the unenviable task of switching positions a year into his career as a Gamecock.

He plugged away at receiver, dealing with the ups and downs that come with his switch and was ready when his number was called, something they started doing as bowl practice started and kept with as things continued.

He responded by completing all nine of his attempts for 160 yards and a score, finishing with a NFL quarterback rating of 155.79 to pair with 10 rushes for 64 yards.

“Any time you have a guy back there who can throw it and be able to run it is such an advantage for an offense,” Shane Beamer said. “I’m sitting here saying to myself, ‘Why didn’t we do this earlier this year if that’s what our offense is going to look like?’ So I’m sure the message boards are talking about how us coaches waited until the 13th game to do this, which they have a point. It’s a great advantage.”

What followed was one of the Gamecocks’ best offensive performances in Shane Beamer and Marcus Satterfield’s short tenures in Columbia so far.

The Gamecocks had 543 yards and 301 rushing, both high-water marks this season and most since the 2020 game against Ole Miss, and scored at least 38 points for the third time this season and second time against a FBS opponent.

The 8.2 yards per play were the most against a FBS opponent since 2014 Tennessee when the Gamecocks averaged 8.6.

“He’s more quiet and lead by example type of guy but today, for some reason, Dakereon came up to me early and kind of game me a nudge and hit me hard,” said Jabari Ellis, fellow South Carolina native. “He was like, ‘Let’s go.’ I want to say he woke up ready, locked and loaded.”

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