Is third team a charm

Two years removed from being a four-star signee with traditional SEC power Tennessee, a JUCO cornerback gave his commitment to the Iowa State coaching staff on Saturday afternoon as he wrapped up an official visit to Ames.

Arizona Western's D'Andre Payne arrived for his official visit on Thursday, just in time to watch the Cyclone men's basketball team beat Iowa on the basketball court. The 5-foot-9, 180-pound Payne said his connections with everyone around the I-State athletic department sold him on the football program.

"The biggest factor was the fact that I had built relationships with Coach (Matt) Campbell and Coach (D.K.) McDonald," said Payne. "They were recruiting me at Toledo and they gave me another opportunity at Iowa State. I sat out this year at Arizona Western, so I didn't have any film. I appreciate the opportunity they gave me and they're real good people. They're in a big-time conference that needs a lot of corners.

"The relationships with the people also sold me on the place. Everywhere you go there's going to be good facilities. Having been at Tennessee and Maryland, I've seen it all pretty much. It wasn't about the facilities; it was about being around good people. I'm starting to sound like Coach Campbell, because he emphasized while I was there how good the people are there."

Payne has spent time at a number of locales since graduating from H.D. Woodson High School in Washington D.C., ranked as the second-ranked player overall in D.C. and 18th at his position nationally. He played eight games as a true freshman at Tennessee in 2014, before deciding to transfer closer to home to Maryland as a walk-on that spring. He competed in practice for the Terrapins last spring, before heading to Arizona Western and enrolling in fall classes. Payne didn't compete on the gridiron for Arizona Western, so he'll have three seasons of eligibility to exhaust over the next three years.

Soon after the new coaching staff arrived in Ames, Payne said both Campbell and McDonald got in touch with him.

"I can't wait to play and be a part of something big there as they turn things around with a new coaching staff," Payne said.

Payne's offer list out of high school read like a who's who of college football. Arkansas, Auburn, Clemson, Colorado, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, Ole Miss, Nebraska, North Carolina, NC State, Ohio State, Stanford, Syracuse, Texas Tech, Vanderbilt, Virginia and Virginia reportedly made offers to Payne.

However, this time around Payne said it really came down to a pair of schools.

"I wasn't sure if I wanted to go back to Maryland yet and didn't know what I wanted to do," Payne said. "I talked it over with my family and Iowa State was the better fit overall."