Joel Taylor Tabbed Defensive Coordinator

MACON, Ga. – Mercer head football coach Drew Cronic continued to build his coaching staff Tuesday when he named Joel Taylor as his defensive coordinator.

Taylor, a four-year letterwinner and team captain at South Carolina State, joins the Mercer coaching staff following one season as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Lenoir-Rhyne under Cronic.

"I'm thrilled to have Joel Taylor leading the Mercer Bears defense," remarked Cronic. "Joel has been successful at every place he has coached in his career. Last season at Lenoir-Rhyne, Joel led one of the grittiest defenses in the nation to multiple top 20 national rankings, and I know he will bring that same tenacity mentoring our student-athletes."

This past season at Lenoir-Rhyne, he helped lead the Bears to a school-record 13 wins and guided senior defensive end Jaquan Artis to D2CCA All-Super Region 2 Defensive Player of the Year honors. Under Taylor, the Bears led the South Atlantic Conference and ranked in the top 20 nationally in total defense, scoring defense and rushing defense. Taylor's defensive unit also recorded 3.57 sacks per game – which ranked 11th among all Division II, FCS and FBS teams in 2019.

At The Citadel in 2018, Taylor directed a defensive secondary that saw junior Aron Spann III land among the national leaders in interceptions for much of the season and Kailik Williams earn Defensive Player of the Year honors in the preseason.

Taylor helped lead The Citadel to a number of achievements in 2016. The Bulldogs put together a program-record 10-game winning streak, set a single-season school record with six road victories, won a second consecutive conference championship, earned a No. 6 national seed in the FCS Playoffs and hosted the first home playoff game in 24 years.

In 2015, The Citadel earned a Southern Conference co-championship and finished 9-4 overall after advancing to the second round of the NCAA FCS Playoffs for only the second time in school history.

Taylor helped South Carolina State earn a share of the MEAC championship in 2013, marking his third title with the Bulldogs. That squad was paced by a dominant defense that led the country in total defense, rushing defense and defensive pass efficiency and ranked second against the pass. They were led by All-MEAC safety Kimario McFadden, who signed a free agent deal with the Falcons in 2014, marking the eighth S.C. State defensive back in five years to make an NFL roster.

In 2011, the S.C. State secondary, led by All-MEAC defensive backs Thompson and Ellis, finished 10th in the nation in defensive pass efficiency. The previous season, Taylor took a unit of four first-year starters in the secondary and helped lead them to a No. 1 ranking in pass defense and No. 2 in pass efficiency in the nation. Additionally, the defense finished tops in the nation in total defense and 17th in interceptions, spearheaded by Ellis and Moody.

He also coached at S.C. State from 2004-08 and was the outside linebackers coach at Lenoir-Rhyne in 2009.

Taylor lettered all four seasons as a defensive back at S.C. State from 2001-04. He was named team captain and defensive MVP during his senior campaign when he helped lead the team to the MEAC championship. As a junior, Taylor was a member of a squad that led the nation in defensive pass efficiency.

A Brooklyn, N.Y., native, Taylor grew up in Irmo, S.C. He earned a bachelor's degree in computer science in 2004 and a master's in rehabilitation counseling in 2008, both from South Carolina State University. He is married to the former Mechelle Robertson.

Mercer will officially introduce Drew Cronic as the program's head football coach on Friday at 4 p.m. at Heritage Hall in the University Center. The introductory press conference is open to the public, and fans are encouraged to stick around for the basketball doubleheader by receiving free admission to the women's game against Gardner-Webb (5 p.m.) and the men's game versus Furman (7:30 p.m.).

Collegiate Coaching Timeline:

2019-Pres. – Mercer University
- Defensive Coordinator
2019 – Lenoir-Rhyne University
- Defensive Coordinator / Linebackers
2014-2018 – The Citadel
- Defensive Passing Game Coordinator / Safeties
2010-2013 – South Carolina State University
- Secondary / Special Teams
2009 – Lenoir-Rhyne University
- Outside Linebackers
2004-2008 – South Carolina State University
- Graduate Assistant

Mercer University Athletics

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