Despite setback, Colin Payne positioned to do ‘amazing things’ with Alvernia
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Like so many young quarterbacks Colin Payne has studied what legendary Tom Brady has done and said over the years.
The former Exeter standout found himself paying particular attention to Brady in recent months. Not so much how the Hall of Fame-bound quarterback prepares himself for games, reads defenses or develops a bond with his receivers.
No, it was more about how Brady recovered from his torn ACL in 2008 and the things he did to protect himself from further harm on a football field.
“He said (that when you return from the injury) you don’t feel yourself,” Payne said, “you don’t trust yourself.”
Payne, a sophomore at Alvernia University, has run the same gamut of feelings since tearing the ACL in his right knee in his third college game last September.
“Mentally, for football, I was there,” Payne said of his return to the field in late March for the Golden Wolves’ spring practices, “ but it was just getting over the mental hump physically.”
He said it took a few weeks of spring ball for him to feel right again; he admits he feels anxious heading into Friday’s season opener against Ursinus.
Payne knows he’ll be fine. Maybe, he figures, he just needs to get past that first hit before he can put it all behind him.
“I’m confident, as always,” he said, “(but) I haven’t played – this is the longest period between football games of my life. You don’t know what to expect.”
Payne is always confident in his abilities, and for good reason. He hit a rare triple in high school, helping each of his teams – football, basketball and baseball — qualify for the PIAA Tournament his senior year.
He set a single-season passing record and led the Eagles to one of the greatest victories in Berks football history when they took out Nick Singleton and top-ranked Gov. Mifflin in the 2021 District 3 Class 5A championship game.
He was an All-State pick in basketball, averaging 18.4 points per game, third-best in the league.
He was an instant success at Alvernia. He won the starting job as a true freshman and set a program record in the season opener by throwing for 380 yards against Ursinus.
A week later he completed 19-of-29 passes with three touchdowns in a 38-35 win at Oberlin College. He was enjoying another big game the following week against Stevenson, throwing three TDs, before his knee gave out as he was rolling out to pass.
“It was culture shock,” said Payne, who had surgery Oct. 4. “I’ve never gone through anything like this. It was a big thing.”
Months before he was able to get on the field and do quarterback drills Payne was preparing for his second season at Alvernia. He the spent the final weeks of last season in the press box with the coaches on game days, communicating with head coach Steve Azzanesi and thinking through the plays even though he couldn’t make them.
“That really helped,” Payne said. “You can see the game from a whole different angle.”
Payne – who started and won a game as a freshman high school quarterback — has always been ahead of the game from the mental side. That’s what impressed Azzanesi immediately, and what made Payne such an instant success at the college level.
“From a processing standpoint, he is just special,” said the second-year Golden Wolves coach. “A lot of quarterbacks just can’t process things the way he does. That’s what made it so unique last year. He was a true freshman, but he was just so ahead of most guys at that stage because he can process information so fast. That allows him to let his talents show and make plays.
“It’s amazing where he is from the mental aspect in such an early stage in college. He’s as sharp as any second-year quarterback can be.”
Payne completed 57.3 percent of his passes for 778 yards and eight TDs in less than 12 quarters. He’s been immersed in the playbook and the program for over a year now. He established himself as a top quarterback in the Middle Atlantic Conference, even though he first season was cut short.
“I proved to myself that I can do it, I can lead my team to a win,” he said.
Payne figures to start this season well ahead of where he left off.
“Last year, first day of camp I had no idea what was going on,” he said. “(This year at camp) it felt so much more comfortable; the game has slowed down tremendously. In the scrimmage, I was shocked at how slow the game felt.”
Azzanesi sees only good things ahead for Payne, who was granted a medical redshirt and is eligible to play four more seasons.
Devastating as Payne’s injury experience was, his coach thinks it could benefit him in the long run.
“This is a terrible thing right now,” he told Payne last year after the surgery, “but the plus is you’re gonna get a fifth year. In my experience (coaching at Wesley College), fifth-year quarterbacks are dangerous.
“Joe Callahan (who was signed by the Green Bay Packers and several other pro teams), he was great his fourth year but his fifth year it was a show. Shane McSweeney, he was really good, but he got injured senior year and was a first-team All-American his fifth year.
“Wow,” he told Payne, “the things that you’re gonna do are gonna be pretty amazing.”