Bryce Darnell begins his fifth season as head coach at Missouri Southern. He was named the third head baseball coach in Southern baseball history on May 22, 2007. Darnell succeeded coach Warren Turner who retired after 31 years at Southern, including 852 wins and two NCAA Division II College World Series appearances. In four years, Darnell has a career record of 106-105. 

The Lions had six players named All-MIAA in 2011 as Dallas Burke was a first-team selection at utility after splitting time at catcher, outfield and designated hitter. Both Jesse Kinzey and Dane Kolkmeyer were second-team selections, while newcomers Brett Abell and Cody Griebling picked up honorable mention status after anchoring the Lions' pitching staff. Senior Patrick Deao was also named an honorable mention pick after he led the Lions with eight outfield assists this year and was tied for the team lead with five home runs and 60 hits. Southern finished just a half game out of the hunt for an MIAA Tournament bid at 24-26 overall. 

The 2010 Missouri Southern baseball team continued its resurgence under coach Bryce Darnell and made the MIAA post season tournament for the second-straight year. The Lions had their second-straight winning record with a 28-26 mark and finished third in the MIAA Tournament, losing out to eventual Division II World Series participant Central Missouri. Southern also set a school record for home runs in a season (64) beating the previous mark of 51. 

The Lions had, at one time, the toughest schedule in Division II, but fought through a rough 3-14 start to go 14-5 over its next 19 games and finished the regular season as the fifth seed in the MIAA Tournament. Southern had four players named All-MIAA and two were named All-Region with senior shortstop Jacob Taylor picking up All-American honors. Junior catcher Joe Lincoln was drafted in the 34^th round of the Major League Baseball draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers and both Taylor and fellow senior CJ Maffei signed professional contracts, as well. 

Darnell's second season saw a dramatic turnaround that led to the Lions finishing 35-20 overall, third place in the MIAA and the program's first trip to the MIAA Tournament since 2002. The Lions, throughout the course of the year, saw such highs including taking three out of four games from eventual national runner up Emporia State and shutting out Central Missouri twice in the same season, a feat that has rarely, if ever, been accomplished. 

The Lions had eight players named All-MIAA and both CJ Maffei and Skyler Rawlins were named All-Region. The team won its first game at the MIAA Tournament and was in contention for an NCAA Regional berth all season. Coming into this year, both Maffei and Rawlins have been tabbed pre-season All-Americans.

Darnell's first season as the head coach at his alma mater saw the team improve in wins, both overall and in conference play, and saw the young Lions squad play one of the most difficult schedules in NCAA Division II. The team won 16 games in MIAA play, including an exciting 3-2 win over MIAA Champ and Division II World Series Participant Central Missouri.

A 1997 graduate of Missouri Southern, Darnell had been the head baseball coach at Webb City High School for eight years, while also teaching social studies at the school. His baseball teams at Webb City won two Missouri Class 3 State Championships. Darnell amassed a 160-43 career record at Webb City and was the Joplin Globe Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2005, while being named the Missouri Class 3 Coach of the Year in 2005 and 2006.

A three-year player for the Lions from 1994-1996, Darnell transferred to Southern after a year at the University of Minnesota. A Brooklyn Center, Minn. native, Darnell was a three-sport athlete at BCHS being named all-state in baseball and football, as well as all-conference in basketball. Darnell played for his father, Doug, at BCHS. Doug Darnell was also the Athletic Director at BCHS.

Darnell hit .436 in 30 games as a sophomore for the Lions in 1994, which is the sixth highest batting average in a season at Southern. He was named honorable mention All-MIAA that year. He had his best season in 1995, helping the Lions to a 43-13 record, including a 17-3 mark in MIAA play. He hit .364 that year with 13 doubles, three homers and 47 RBIs en route to being named first-team all-region and all-MIAA. The Lions were second in the MIAA Postseason Tournament and made an appearance in the NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament.

Darnell's senior season saw the catcher hit .339 with 20 doubles, four homers and 48 RBIs in 55 games. The 20 doubles is fifth all-time in a season at Southern. He was named honorable mention all-MIAA that year. Darnell was drafted after his junior season in the 40th round of the Major League Baseball Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He was later drafted after his senior season in the 58th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He played in 1996 for the Visalia Oaks, a single A affiliate of the Diamondbacks.

Darnell's .577 on base percentage as a sophomore ranks third in a season, while his .996 fielding percentage (1 error) in 1995 is second all-time. He ranks seventh in career doubles with 40, while ranking sixth in batting average (.366) and seventh in fielding percentage
(.976).

He holds a degree in Secondary Education from Missouri Southern (1997), as well as a Masters in Educational Administration from Missouri State University (2000).

Darnell has a wife, Pamela and two children, Darcy (10), and Cy (7).