Colorado Buffaloes Hosting Elite Offensive Tackle Recruit, Florida State Commit: Flip Watch?

247Sports ranks Payne as the No. 89 offensive tackle in his class and the No. 95 prospect in Florida.

Payne told Rivals in a recent interview that he'd like to close his college recruitment ahead of his senior season at Edison High School in Miami, giving the Buffs limited time to seal the flip.

"I definitely want to just be focused on the season," Payne told Rivals. "I want to win, I want to focus on winning as many games as possible and hopefully winning the state championship with my brothers at my high school. I definitely want to (close my recruitment) before my season, lock it in, and just focus on ball from there."

Payne added that he'd like to join a college program that will help him reach his goal of playing in the NFL. Along with winning games, "Coach Prime" and his CU football staff have made sending players to the NFL a high priority. Seven players (and counting) from last year's team were either drafted or picked up a free-agent deal in April.

"The biggest thing is gonna be whatever puts me in the best position to get myself to the NFL because that is my ultimate goal," Payne told Rivals. "I know that I have to do the work. This is all about who can develop me and get me to where I want to be."

Led by the three-man coaching tandem of Gunnar White, Andre Gurode and George Hegamin, Colorado's offensive line is trending in the right direction but has yet to land a class of 2026 commitment. The Buffs landed three class of 2025 offensive linemen: Chauncey Gooden, Carde Smith and Jay Gardenhire. Colorado watched Gardenhire enter the transfer portal in April, however.

Ahead of the 2025 season, sophomore left tackle Jordan Seaton will likely be the only returning Buff to earn a starting spot on the offensive line. Notable transfer portal additions include Xavier Hill (Memphis), Larry Johnson III (Tennessee), Zarian McGill (Louisiana Tech) and Mana Taimani (Ole Miss).