When Dakereon Joyner stood at the podium for a Zoom call with reporters last week, something seemed different.

Joyner, the former four-star Fort Dorchester quarterback who produced one of the best high school careers in state history, now has a full year under his belt at wide receiver.

And it was at that podium that a confident, focused, driven Joyner stood and said that he not only hopes to excel this season. But that he hopes to set a leadership example for his teammates to follow.

It was a few days earlier, standing in the same spot, that new wide receivers coach Justin Stepp was asked which receivers have caught his attention and Joyner's name was the first out of his mouth.

"Really, the first guy that comes to my mind that's making a ton of plays and just doing a great job of leading our group is DK," Stepp said. "Just can't say enough great things about him and how he's been ... (Jalen Brooks) and DK, they're up here every day. We start watching film here at 1:00 and they'll probably beat me in there to start watching it."