Updated: August 29, 2025
Mario (Rio) Byrd joined the Johns Hopkins coaching staff in 2023 as the defensive line coach and added responsibilities as the program’s recruiting coordinator on February 27, 2024. Byrd graduated from Christopher Newport University.
Byrd made an immediate impact in his first season at Homewood in 2023, helping the Blue Jays to a 12-1 record, a Centennial Conference title and a trip to the NCAA Quarterfinals while leading one of the top defensive lines in the nation. He coached one All-American, one Academic All-American, three Academic All-District selections and three of his players earned All-Centennial Conference honors.
Spearheaded by Byrd’s defensive line, the 2023 Blue Jays allowed just 128.9 yards per game on the ground and the unit rang up 39 sacks on the year; Johns Hopkins tied for 23rd in the nation with its 3.0 sacks per game during the 2023 season and the 39 sacks are tied for the third most for the Blue Jays since 2001.
For an encore, Byrd helped the 2024 Blue Jays to a 12-2 record, another Centennial title and a run to the NCAA Semifinals. Three Blue Jay defensive linemen earned All-Centennial honors, including one who was named the Centennial Defensive Player of the Year and a D3football.com All-American. Â
One of his players also earned Academic All-America honors in 2024 and the defensive line fueled a unit that allowed just 13.6 points per game and held all 10 opponents to 14 points or less during a stunning 10-game winning streak that landed the Blue Jays in the NCAA Semifinals.
Byrd arrived at Homewood after spending the 2022 season as the defensive line coach at Alvernia. He had previously spent one year at his alma mater as the outside linebackers coach.
At Alvernia, he also served as the defensive coordinator of the Golden Wolves’ JV team. At both Alvernia and Christopher Newport, Byrd worked closely with the head coach and defensive coordinators in all practice and game planning, recruiting and the day-to-day operation of the program.
After his playing career at CNU, Byrd got his coaching start there as a student assistant coach in the spring of 2019 and later spent one season as the defensive line coach at Warwick (VA) High School.
