Gi’Bran Payne, once a top-rated Cincinnati prep football recruit at La Salle High School, is returning to his hometown.
Payne signed with the Cincinnati Bearcats on Monday, Jan. 5. He’s been at Notre Dame since 2022 and just finished his third season with the Irish, playing in all 12 games, mainly on special teams while getting some carries at running back.
The 5-foot-10, 205-pound Payne fell behind in the depth chart after injuries earlier in his career. He was on the College Football Comeback Player of the Year Watch List for 2025.
In addition to his special teams work, he had nine carries for 53 yards, including 26 yards in Notre Dame’s 41-10 win over Navy Nov. 9 in South Bend. He also had three rushes for 27 yards in their Sept. 27 win over Arkansas.
Payne missed 2024 with an injury but ran for 168 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore in 2023 and had nine catches for 58 yards and two more touchdowns, being used as a short-yardage back. He also had a pair of kickoff returns for 41 yards. He had six carries for 24 yards in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl vs. Oregon State, including a “wildcat’ snap at quarterback.
He appeared in three games as a freshman in 2022, including the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl against South Carolina.
“Gi’Bran is a great athlete, and I believe a three-down back,” Payne’s former high school coach Pat McLaughlin of La Salle said. “He’s a gifted runner and has great vision and burst to where he can create explosive plays. He’s graduated from Notre Dame, which is most important, and can come home and play in front of friends and family.”
Gi’Bran Payne tough in GCL-South
Payne was the target of the likes of Alabama, Florida, Notre Dame, Northwestern and Penn State then the four-star was briefly committed to the Indiana Hoosiers, then coached by Tom Allen.
In April 2022, he flipped his commitment to Notre Dame, coached by former UC defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman. At the time, former La Salle star running back Jeremy Larkin was on staff with the Irish, along with former Moeller quarterback Gus Ragland, giving Payne some Greater Catholic League-South connections.
Payne also dealt with injuries at La Salle
For coach Pat McLaughlin’s Lancers, Payne played in the first six games of 2022 with 274 yards and six touchdowns plus 12 catches for 177 and two more. In a 48-27 win over Louisville Trinity he ran for 63 yards and a score and caught six passes for 152 yards and two touchdowns.
His junior year was also limited to injury, with 238 yards rushing and nine catches for 81 yards and three scores. In the season opener vs. Elder in The Pit, he ran for 113 yards and two touchdowns and caught three passes for 54 yards and two more tallies as the Lancers knocked off the Panthers 53-52.
Payne’s most productive high school year was 2019, when La Salle was a state champion. As a sophomore, playing alongside future Northwestern back Cam Porter, Payne ran for 790 yards and nine touchdowns and had eight catches for 141 yards and three scores. In a 41-20 win over Moeller, he ran for 152 yards and a touchdown.
In the state championship game vs. Massillon Washington, Payne had 129 yards rushing and a touchdown in La Salle’s 34-17 victory. He doubled as a linebacker that year and had 41 tackles, four sacks, three forced fumbles and two interceptions, with one being a pick-six.
Payne is expected to have two years of eligibility at UC.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bearcats get ex-Notre Dame, La Salle HS RB Gi’Bran Payne
Reporting by Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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By Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer | USA TODAY Network
