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Joel Tyson
Joel Tyson enters his fifth year as head coach of the Wofford College men’s soccer program for the 2023 campaign. He was hired on December 12, 2018, after spending the previous two years with the Charlotte Independence in the USL. He was an assistant coach for the Terriers from 2011-2014.
“From the time I left in 2014 as an assistant coach, Wofford was the only place I could see myself as a head coach,” said Tyson. “The people, the campus, and the program hold a special place for me and I am proud to be able to call Wofford home again. I have enjoyed the opportunity coaching in the professional game for the past few years. However, it was the relationships I had with the alumni and the relationships I had on campus that made this decision more than just a soccer decision."
During the 2022 season, the team was 6-9-2 overall and 2-2-1 in the Southern Conference. Nikolai Rojel was selected as the SoCon Freshman of the Year while also being named to the All-SoCon First Team and All-Freshman Team. Jackson Wrobel and Paul Jones joined Rojel on the All-SoCon First Team. Jakob Andersson was selected to the All-Socon Second Team and the All-Freshman Team. Joining Rojel and Andersson on the All-Freshman Team were Nathan Childress and Zakaria Holmen.
The 2021 season saw the team post a 5-11-1 overall record and a 1-4-1 SoCon clip. Highlights during the season included back-to-back shutout triumphs over Gardner-Webb and UNC Asheville and a 2-0 win over VMI in the first round of the Southern Conference Tournament. Mitchell Myers was named First-Team All-Southern Conference, and Brandon Oddy earned second-team honors. The All-Freshman Team featured Magnus Kjoller, Amin Mohammedi, Nic Parker and Christoffer Saietz. After the season, Mitchell Myers signed a professional contract with USL Championship side Memphis 901 FC.
The team played the 2020-21 season in the spring of 2021 and had a 1-7-1 overall record. Seven of the nine games were decided by one goal. Buster Sjoberg was named All-Southern Conference first team and 22 players were recognized on the Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll.
In his first season at Wofford, the team posted a 4-13-1 overall record and were 2-3-1 in Southern Conference play. Highlights during the season included an overtime win against Mercer and Adrian Roseth being named the Southern Conference Freshman of the Year. Roseth, Sam Ross and Buster Sjoberg earned All-Southern Conference honors. Sjoberg, Roseth and Brandon Oddy were named to the SoCon All-Freshman Team. A total of 27 players earned Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll accolades.
For two years Tyson was a member of the coaching staff of the Charlotte Independence in the USL and contributed to a playoff appearance and the franchise’s best season. In his first season with the club, the Independence goalkeepers recorded six clean sheets, 90 saves, and the Eastern Conference’s fourth-best goal differential. During his breakout 2017 season, goalkeeper Cody Mizell played in 32 games on his way to earning USL Save of the Month for May, USL Save of the Year Runner-Up, and being one of five USL Goalkeeper of the Year nominations. He was planning to work for the USL expansion club New Mexico United as first assistant coach before accepting the position at Wofford.
He spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Central Florida. In 2015, the Knights posted a 9-8-2 overall record. Hadji Barry was selected to the American All-Conference first team, while Jakov Basic earned All-Rookie Team honors. Barry was picked 13th overall in the MLS SuperDraft. During the 2016 season, the team was 5-11 overall and Matias Pyysalo was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year. Brian Jamba earned a spot on the American All-Rookie Team.
Tyson spent four seasons as an assistant coach with the Wofford men’s soccer team after spending two years at Hofstra. While with the Terriers, the team earned the 2013 Southern Conference Regular Season Championship and had back-to-back appearances in the Southern Conference Tournament Championship final. The team posted 10 or more wins in three of his four seasons with the Terriers. Tyson played a big role in Wofford’s recruiting and development of players such as Connor Davis, Nestor Jaramillo, Forrest Lasso, Matthew Aurednik, and Garrett Closs earned All-Southern Conference Team honors.
At Hofstra, Tyson worked primarily with the goal keepers along with assisting in all aspects of the day-to-day operations. In 2010 the team recorded nine shutouts with a 1.12 goal against average. In his first season on the staff, the goalkeepers had seven shutouts.
Tyson is the former starting goalkeeper at Coker College, where he graduated in 2008 with a degree in history (and a minor in English). He tallied a 1.85 goal against average as a senior for the Cobras, when he helped the program to the highest win total in school history. He was named a team captain as both a junior and senior.
While an undergraduate, Tyson also served as president of Coker’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), helped organize an athletic department fundraiser for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and served as a student ambassador for two years. He also attended the National Leadership Conference in 2007 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Tyson served as the Director of Goalkeeping at the Ralph Lundy Soccer Academy for many years. He also worked as the goalkeeper coach for the South Carolina Olympic Development Program (ODP), where he assisted Ralph Polson. He also worked independently with the goalkeepers for the Long Island Rough Riders of the Premier Development League (PDL).
A native of Irmo, South Carolina, Tyson earned three soccer letters at Dutch Fork High School prior to attending Coker. He served as the goalkeeper coach at Dutch Fork for one season before joining the Hofstra program in 2009.
Tyson and his wife, Megan, were married in 2019 and reside in Boiling Springs, South Carolina with their sons, Callum and Cameron.
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