Dylan Joyce will exchange the Murray River for the beaches of Miami when he takes up a punting scholarship with the University of Miami next week.
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The 23-year-old flew out of Melbourne on Friday with his parents, Kyabram business owners Stuart and Sue, along with little sister Gemma to take up a full athletic scholarship with Miami University — secured through the ProKick Australia company started by former Brisbane Bear Nathan Chapman.
Joyce is eligible to spend the next four years at the university and has enrolled in an exercise physiology course.
At 189cm and 96kg the Kyabram product is more than capable of mixing it with the giant bodies that will be charging at him while completing his kicking duties.
Joyce will replace the university’s 2022 punter Lou Hedley, who is a heavily tattooed West Australian with a larger-than-life personality.
“Lou is a bit of a legend over there. He is basically the king of Miami,” Joyce said.
“He is from Mandurah in West Austalia and went through ProKick as well.”
Hedley’s eligibility at college level finished at the end of the 2022 season and he had nominated to enter the NFL draft.
“They loved him so much that they went to ProKick and asked for ‘another Lou Hedley’.
Hedley was a fan favourite in Miami and was a second team All American who secured two degrees while at the university.
He averaged 45.3 yards per punt in 2022 and Joyce is averaging between 45-50 yards with his kicks.
There will be three punters at Miami when Joyce arrives at the university.
He spoke to the second-year coach Mario Cristobal the day before his signing was publicly announced.
Joyce is following in the footsteps of ground-breaking AFL stars Darren Bennett, Saverio Rocca, Ben Graham and more recently St Kilda pair Aaron Sippos and Bailey Rice.
Graham famously opposed Rocca when the Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles played off for a spot in the Superbowl in 2008.
Sippos made his debut in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles in September last year, while Rice is on scholarship with the University of Charlotte.
Joyce played last season in the Murray league with Moama, having had several years at Tongala after finishing his junior football with Kyabram and Lancaster.
He kicked 18 goals from 11 games last year, including a bag of eight against Echuca United early in the season.
Miami University made the announcement that Joyce would be joining their roster on December 19, replacing Lou Hedley — well known for his neck-to-ankle tattoos.
Miami has won five national titles, the last in 2001, and coach Cristobal is a former member of two national championship-winning teams at the University of Miami.
Joyce, Cristobal and the Hurricanes are tipped to win four games on the 2023 schedule.
Last season the Hurricanes finished with five wins and seven defeats, in the three-month season that runs from the first week of September to the last week of November.
ProKick Australia has a stable of almost a dozen Australian Rules footballers heading to US universities for this year, Joyce explaining he expects to play against at least two of those in his 12 games with Miami this year.
Joyce’s interest in punting was sparked by Moama teammate Tom Sheldon, who spent three years at the University of North Carolina.
Joyce was forced to end his Murray league season early when he was called up at the start of August to trial with ProKick.
“I went down for a tryout in February last year, but I didn’t start the program until August,” he said.
“I was told in November that I was going to Miami, but couldn’t tell anyone until it was announced in December.”
Joyce said Miami University had liked his film, a snippet of him kicking five or six drop punts, half a dozen torpedoes and some bananas.
He is travelling to the US only days after two Australians were involved as kickers in the national title game, between Georgia and Texas Christian (TCU).
Brett Thorson played with Georgia and Jordy Sandy with TCU, among four of the top 10 punters in the NCAA’s Football Bowl Subdivision — the highest level of college football.
Joyce will leave behind his Aussie Rules career, having made his senior debut six years ago as a teenager with Tongala.
He also played underage football at Kyabram and Lancaster.
Joyce departs Kyabram having just finished building a house in the team and said while it was a big risk, it was something that excited him greatly.
“I worked at C&D Contractors on McCormack Rd, where I did my apprenticeship and I’ve been labouring in Melbourne four days a week in recent times,” he said.
Joyce has never been to the mainland of the US, but did holiday as a child in Hawaii with his family.
He is most excited about the prospects of MU in the college competition, which starts in the first week of September this year.
“We will have a strong team next year. Miami is the third best recruiting class in the country going into this year,” he said.
Joyce will live in an apartment with the man responsible for putting the ball in his lands, the Miami University long snapper.
“He is a transfer from Michigan State and a real legend,” Joyce said.
His family will stay for 10 days before returning to Australia and no doubt he will have a visit at some stage from older brother Beau and younger brother Jackson — both similarly enthusiastic about their sports.
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