Colorado’s 2026 recruiting class got significantly bigger on Monday.
Xavier Payne, a 6-foot-7, 320-pound offensive lineman from Miami, verbally committed to CU and head coach Deion Sanders.
Rated a 3-star recruit by 247Sports.com, Payne originally committed to Florida State on Dec. 21 and decommitted on June 22.
According to 247Sports, Payne has 33 scholarship offers and took official visits to CU, Florida State and Syracuse in June. His offer list also includes Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Miami, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Penn State, Pittsburgh and Tennessee, among others.
Last season at Orlando (Fla.) Jones High School, Payne played left tackle for a team that advanced to the 4A state title game. This year as a senior, Payne will play at Edison High School in Miami.
Payne is the sixth player in CU’s 2026 class, joining linebacker Colby Johnson (Sammamish, Wash.); cornerbacks Preston Ashley (Brandon, Miss.) and Maurice Williams Jr. (New Orleans); edge Domata Peko Jr. (Ventura College); and tight end Gavin Mueller (South Elgin, Ill.).
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