Michigan Lands Commitment From 4-Star Alabama Transfer

Payne was one of the top recruits coming out of the state of Michigan back in 2021. 247Sports rated him as the No. 39 player in the country, the No. 9 defensive lineman and the No. 2 prospect from The Great Lake State. He ultimately chose Nick Saban's Crimson Tide.

But in four years at Alabama, Payne didn't become the big-impact player that some might have hoped he would. After redshirting his freshman year, Payne played in a handful of games in 2022, became a rotational player in Alabama's College Football Playoff run in 2023 and again in 2024.

Over his four seasons at Alabama, Payne recorded 30 total tackles, three tackles for loss, half a sack and two fumble recoveries in 32 games.

Payne joins a Michigan team that looks like it'll be a serious force in 2025 in spite of the team's struggles in 2025. By far the biggest selling point to fans heading into next year is the impending arrival of No. 1 overall quarterback Bryce Underwood. 

The Wolverines pulled off one of the biggest recruiting coups in recent memory, prying Underwood from LSU to give themselves a quarterback of the future.

While there was no shortage of calls for head coach Sherrone Moore's job after the terrible start the team got off to in 2024, they ultimately secured bowl eligibility and shocked the world by beating the Buckeyes to knock their arch-rivals out of the Big Ten Championship Game for the fourth year in a row.

It remains to be seen exactly what Michigan will look like in 2025, but Payne is joining a team with the needling pointing straight up.