Minnesota Football: 3 Way-too-early 2022 Breakout Candidates

No. 3 – Jah Joyner, EDGE

It’s no secret that Minnesota football had one of the best defenses in the country last season. The Gophers ranked in the top five nationally in terms of total defense, allowing just 279 yards per game (3rd in CFB), and 17.3 points per game (7th in CFB).

Although two of the team’s most reliable starters, Boye Mafe and Esezi Otemowo, have moved on to the NFL, they were responsible for 10 of the team’s 25 sacks on the year, and are expected to be taken early on in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Not only are two of the Golden Gophers’ Senior Bowl invitees departing from the program but they’re also leaving behind almost 1,000 open snaps. Meaning that there are now two glaring holes on both sides of the defensive line, and a massive opportunity for one of these young guys to step up.

While there is sure to be a ton of competition for playing time before the start of the regular season, there’s a very good chance that we see a brand new face enter into the fold.

In comes Jah Joyner.

Thomas Rush finished last season second on the team in sacks with 5.5 and is likely to become the program’s leading pass rusher in 2022. Outside of that, it’s about as open as it gets, and even though Minnesota football did add Vanderbilt transfer Lorenza Surgers, and Clemson transfer Darnell Jefferies. Jah Joyner is the young up-and-comer who’s received the most praise and easily has the most potential to break out in 2022.

Despite playing in just four games as a true freshman in 2021, on a limited snap count nonetheless, Joyner proved to be one of the more athletic players on the field in Minnesota’s win over West Virginia in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl and even came away with his first career sack by the end of the game.

And from just watching his tape in high school, he clearly has no difficulty getting after the quarterback.

Joyner has serious potential to become a dangerous pass rusher in the Big Ten, and at 6’5″, 250-pounds, he easily has the size, length, and athleticism to take the game over at defensive end. He’s also the only Golden Gopher with a physical profile most similar to that of Mafe and Otemowo. Additionally, he won Spring Game MVP in 2021 and has garnered a ton of praise from coach Fleck since his arrival in 2020.

Coming out of high school, Joyner was a three-star recruit and the seventh-rated player in the state of Connecticut. While he may not have as much experience as others at the position, he’s certainly going to have the opportunity to prove himself in 2022, and he might just carry all the necessary intangibles to emerge as a day one starter.