Davien Payne

Position:
Runningback
Height:
5-11
Weight:
220
Class:
Freshman
Hometown:
Perris, Calif.
High School:
Citrus Hill

AT COLORADO: This Season (Fr.)-Projected as a tailback his true freshman year in college.

HIGH SCHOOL-As a senior, SuperPrep ranked him as the No. 129 player in the Far West Region, which included being the No. 121 player overall and No. 6 running back from California. Rivals ranked him as the No. 46 running back nationally, the No. 98 player from California and No. 5 running back from the Golden State. ESPN.com ranked him as the No. 49 running back, No. 84 player from California and No. 123 player in the West Region, while Scout tabbed him the No. 58 running back in the nation. He earned first-team All-Southern Section Eastern Division and first-team All-Mountain Pass League honors. He was his school's Most Valuable Player his junior and senior seasons, and was the league MVP as a junior. In his career, he rushed 529 times for 3,806 yards and 57 touchdowns, with 18 games with 100-plus yards, seven with 200-plus and one over 300. He scored touchdowns in 21 of 24 games spanning his junior and senior seasons, with multiple touchdowns on 15 occasions (six, five and four all twice). He caught 14 passes for 218 yards. As a senior, he rushed 171 times for 1,559 yards and 28 touchdowns, averaging 9.1 yards per rush; he had eight 100-yard plus rushing games (three over 200), with two or more scores eight times (four or more thrice) and had a gain of 54 yards or more in six games (with a long of 82). He caught eight passes for 182 yards, averaging 22.8 per receptions. Top games as a senior came against Perris (12 rushes, 207 yards, 2 TDs in a 42-0 win), Tahquitz (15-215 yards, 6 TDs, a 49-14 victory), West Valley (14-112, 4 TDs in a 69-28 verdict) and Norte Vista (15-166, 5 TDs). As a junior, he was really a workhorse, with 318 rushes for 1,928 yards and 27 touchdowns, averaging 6.1 yards per carry, with six catches for 36 yards for 1,964 all-purpose yards. In averaging 175.3 yards per game, he rushed for 100-yards plus 10 times and 200 or more four times, including his top game as a prep: in a 51-25 win over Canyon Springs to open the season, which was also his first career start, he rushed 34 times for 325 yards and four touchdowns. He followed that with a 235-yard, 5-TD effort on 30 carries in a 41-13 win over Moreno Valley and would go over the 1,000-yard mark early in his fifth game of the year. Later in the year, he had 228 yards and six scores in a 48-19 win over Tahquitz, with his other 200-plus game against San Jacinto (41-21, 2 TD) in a 21-18 win. He scored touchdowns in 10 of 11 games, with two or more seven times. He split time between the varsity and J.V. as a sophomore, but still had 40 carries for 319 yards and two touchdowns in spot duty on varsity. Under coach Eric Zomalt, Citrus Hill was 39-6 in his three years there (12-1 as a senior, 7-4 as a junior and 10-1 as a sophomore), winning two Mountain Pass League titles his sophomore and senior years. He also lettered in track & field, participating in a variety of events including the 100- and 400-meter dashes, sprint relays and the shot put. He also played junior varsity basketball.

ACADEMICS-He is majoring in Sociology at Colorado as he has an interest in Criminal Justice (juvenile probation officer in particular). He had a grade point average of over 3.0 as a prep and was honored as Citrus Hill's student of the month in October for attaining a 3.6 GPA.

PERSONAL-He was born November 24, 1992 in Perris, Calif. He enjoys spending time with his family, relaxing, hanging out with friends and working out. He developed and was president of a club in high school that helped special education students by organizing field trips and fun activities. He is the first member of his immediate family to attend college.