Florida State has added another commitment to its 2026 recruiting class. Three-star offensive tackle prospect Xavier Payne gave his pledge to Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell on Saturday. Payne, who is 6-foot-7 and 320 pounds, committed to FSU shortly after wrapping up an unofficial visit to campus on Saturday afternoon.
Payne was offered by FSU on December 10 shortly after new offensive line coach Herb Hand, formerly of UCF, was the Seminoles offensive line coach. The rising senior from Orlando (Fla.) Jones High was offered by Hand last March when he UCF's offensive line coach.
"I am committing, but just the vibe I got from Coach Norvell and the intensity and the way that I just know that he knows and believes in myself and the program," said Payne.
Payne also spoke about his relationship with FSU's new offensive line coach and it what it meant to him that he was the first offensive lineman to be offered by Hand after he took the job with the Seminoles.
"It was everything, because me and him, we were close," said Payne. "We were real close at UCF and he came over here, and as soon as it was out, literally five hours later, he called me and was like, 'Yo, you're my guy.' And he put a lot of faith in me with that, and that was a huge part of my decision today, just knowing that I had faith in him."
He also spoke about what he likes about Hand as a coach on the field.
"I love the way he gets after it every day," continued Payne. "He coaches with a lot of intensity, but also, he's a family guy. He's going to take care of his guys outside of football. And my goal is the NFL. So, he's put a lot of guys in the NFL, so that's a big part of it."
Payne also spoke more about his impressions of Norvell after getting to spend some time one-on-one time with him.
"(He is) Intense and I was there for it," said Payne. "I loved every minute of it. Not a bad intensity at all. He's just so enthusiastic about where he wants to bring this program. And bringing in guys like me with the same mindset. He truly believes that we could turn this thing around like never seen before."
Payne is the sixth prospect to commit to FSU's 2026 recruiting class which ranked 8th in the country prior to his commitment. QB Brady Smigiel, DB Tedarius Hughes, WR Darryon Williams, ATH Efrem White and DB Tre Bell have all been committed to the Seminoles' 2026 class since this summer if not earlier.
