Top 2026 recruit Xavier Payne hints at dilemma between Deion Sanders' Colorado and Fran Brown's Syracuse as commitment decision looms

Colorado doesn’t yet have an offensive tackle commitment for its 2026 recruiting class, and Deion Sanders has made three-star prospect Xavier Payne a top priority to fill that spot. The Jones High School (Orlando, Florida) standout backed off his pledge to Florida State in June after being committed since December.

Payne explained his decision to decommit by saying both he and Florida State realized it wasn’t the right fit. Once the official visits to multiple programs period wrapped up, he trimmed his list of options down to Syracuse and Colorado.

On Sunday, Payne teased fans with an X post:

"Who we playing with? @CuseFootball or @CUBuffsFootball."

Coach Prime brought Payne to Boulder for an official midweek visit in June.

"It was great," Payne told Rivals following the trip. "The best part was being to sit down with the offensive line coaches and truly building that connection while getting to see their plan for me and how I fit into the program.

"As I was sitting in the room it really hit me how much NFL experience is on the staff. So not only do they know how to get there because they did it, but also because they have sent so many in their years of coaching."

Colorado has received commitments from five players so far in the 2026 class: tight end Gavin Mueller, athlete Domata Peko Jr., cornerback Preston Ashley, linebacker Colby Johnson and cornerback Maurice Williams. Peko Jr. is the son of longtime NFL player and current Buffaloes defensive line coach Domata Peko.

Xavier Payne shares Colorado's visions for his caliber

Colorado offensive line coach Gunnar White extended an offer to Xavier Payne back in May. Since then, the Buffaloes have made a concerted effort to recruit him and even outlined a specific role for him on their roster.

"They visualize me as a tackle and told me exactly what I have to fix to become a great tackle rather than interior," Payne told Rivals in June. "They also showed me to the drills on exactly how those issues would be fixed before college."

Payne spent his junior year at Jones High School in Orlando, Florida, before transferring to Edison High School in Miami for his senior season. He is the No. 61 offensive tackle in the 2026 class and the No. 99 recruit in Florida, according to the On3 Industry Rankings.