ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Former Illinois State offensive lineman Brandon Joyce will get a chance to continue his professional football career, after signing a free-agent contract to play for the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League (NFL).
The St. Charles, Mo., native will now have the chance to play for his hometown team and the organization that his father, Terry, also played for in the 1970's. A 6-foot-4, 310-pound guard/tackle, Joyce spent some time with the Minnesota Vikings in 2008 before joining the Toronto Argonauts' of the Canadian Football League (CFL) practice squad that September. He spent the 2009 season with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League (UFL), and had been doing demolition work when he got the call to tryout for the Rams during their post-draft mini-camp.
After transferring to Illinois State prior to the 2006 season from Indiana, Joyce became a vital part of the potent ISU offense. He started 22 games in his Redbird career and was named a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference All-Newcomer team in 2006. During that season, he made 11 starts and was part of the ISU offense that ranked No. 8 nationally with 397.5 yards per game and advanced to the second round of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs.
During his senior season in 2007, Joyce started all 11 games at right tackle and was instrumental in the Redbird running game which amassed 2,194 rushing yards on the season, the seventh-highest rushing total in school history. The Redbird offense also averaged 402.8 yards of total offense per game that season.
Joyce will former teammate Laurént Robinson as a member of the Rams roster and is now the fourth former Redbird in the NFL, joining Tom Nelson and Walter Mendenhall of the Cincinnati Bengals.
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