He has previously been an assistant coach at Luther, South Dakota, his alma mater Augustana University, and Michigan State.
Joe stayed there for four years before returning to the Midwest in 1979 as the head coach at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis–Saint Paul.
After his college career, Salem then signed with the Robinson Sphinx club in France Championnat Élite Division 1.
[5] In 1993, Salem signed to play in France and also began his coaching career with the Robinson Sphinx, a football team from Paris.
[7] From 1994 to 1995, Salem served as a graduate assistant at Michigan State working with the wide receivers and quarterbacks under head coaches George Perles and Nick Saban.
[28] After one season as a senior offensive consultant for Memphis, Salem was promoted to tight ends coach on April 13, 2021.