2023 Penn State football snapshot profile: No. 27 Lamont Payne Jr.
Going into the 2023 football season, Nittany Lions Wire will be looking at each scholarship player listed on the Penn State roster. Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for James Franklin this season.
Joining the program this year is freshman Lamont Payne Jr., a Pennsylvania product who chose to stay close to home to play his college football. Payne Jr. is certainly a player to watch grow and be developed this year and next, but he will likely fill the depth chart as a reserve option for the Nittany Lions this fall. Here is a snapshot look at one of Penn State’s newest additions to the roster in 2023.
Preseason Player Profile
Hometown: Bridgeville, PA
Height: 6-1
Weight: 170
247Sports Composite Ranking
[3-stars] | [No. 10 in Pennsylvania] | [No. 60 overall cornerback]
Class of 2023
Class in 2023: Freshman
Penn State was one of the schools to extend an early offer to Lamont Payne Jr., doing so in 2021 as the third school to do so, and the second power conference program behind West Virginia. Almost immediately, Penn State became the frontrunner in the recruiting process as he made numerous visits to Penn State’s campus and committed to the program in mid-September 2021. From there, there was no wavering in his path to signing day.
Payne signed his letter of intent in the early signing period for the Class of 2023 and he enrolled in January of this year to go through spring football practices and begin working on being a part of the team’s plans moving forward.
Career Stats
Lamont Payne Jr. has yet to step on the field for the Nittany Lions, so he has no stats to speak of at this time. Because he was enrolled for the spring semester, Payne did get a chance to participate in the Blue-White Game, where he did record a pass breakup.
Depth Chart Overview
While it does not appear Lamont Payne is going to have a significant role in the defense right out of the gates of his college career, it may not take too long for that to change. Lamont Payne will likely be sitting third on the depth chart behind returning players no matter which cornerback position he is playing.
Kalen King (pictured above) is a returning starter, and one of the best at the position in the nation, and Johnny Dixon could be locking down the other starting job. But Penn State also has Cam Miller and transfer Audavion Collins who could be next in line at either position. This will allow Payne to continue developing this season without the pressure of being on the field in a big spot just yet.
Payne could be a fast riser in the secondary going into 2024, and he’ll probably still see some time on the field this fall. It just won’t be a significant role this fall.
