After nearly 40 years at the helm, Johnson C. Smith University head coach Stephen Joyner Sr. is retiring.
Johnson C. Smith announced on Friday that Joyner is “transitioning” from his position as head men’s basketball coach after 36 years. He finished his career with 600 wins, third in CIAA history behind Dave Robbins of Virginia Union and Clarence “Big House” Gaines.
“It was a great run here at Smith,” Joyner said in a brief tweet released by the school.
The Winston-Salem, NC native was a star guard at Atkins High School before coming to JCSU as a player from 1969-1973.
After a stint as an assistant coach at Virginia Union University, Stephen Joyner received his first head coaching position with Smith’s women’s team in 1980, building the Golden Bulls into one of the CIAA’s most competitive programs. He guided the women’s team to its first appearance in the NCAA South Atlantic Regional Tournament. After compiling a 92-87 record with the women’s team, Joyner took over as the head men’s coach in 1987.
He led Johnson C. Smith to three CIAA Tournament titles (2001, 2008, 2009) — the only tournament titles in school history.
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