Seth Payne, an experienced defensive coach, joined Clark Lea’s staff in 2024 as assistant defensive line coach and pass rush specialist.
In his first season, Payne worked with defensive line coach Larry Black and defensive ends coach Jovan Haye to help improve the team’s pass rush. The Commodores jumped from 101st nationally in sacks in 2023 to 64th in 2024, an instrumental part of the first winning season and first bowl victory in over a decade. Khordae Sydnor and Miles Capers led the front in pass rush. Capers recorded eight tackles for loss on the year while Sydnor added 6.5
Payne arrived in Nashville having spent the last five seasons at Elon where he served as defensive line coach and defensive run game coordinator. He was also the recruiting coordinator for the Phoenix in 2023.
Elon’s 2023 squad ranked among the top 20 in FCS in sacks, averaging better than 2.5 per game. Marvin Pearson and Caleb Curtain led the way, each ranking among the top 20 in the CAA.
In 2022, Elon ranked 13th nationally with 2.83 sacks per game, highlighted by 11 in a victory over Albany. In addition, Elon allowed just 131.6 rushing yards per game, the fewest for the team since 2009.
The 2021 season saw a young defensive line deliver 19 sacks while also playing stout against the run. Elon was 5-0 when holding opponents under 120 rushing yards including an upset of No. 25 Rhode Island where the Rams were held to 44 rushing yards.
Payne also coached Elon’s Marcus Willoghby in 2019 as he became Elon’s FCS sack leader with 16.5 career sacks and signed a free agent contract with the Baltimore Ravens
Prior to Elon, Payne was briefly at Texas A&M as a defensive analyst in 2019 before joining Elon and spent 2018 as the defensive line coach at VMI.
Payne was at Wake Forest as a graduate assistant from 2015-17, working primarily with the defensive line. That included the 2016 season where Lea served as Wake Forest’s linebackers coach under then-defensive coordinator Mike Elko.
Payne served as a defensive assistant at Villanova in 2014 and started his coaching career as defensive line and linebackers coach at his alma mater, Moravian.
He was a four-year member of the football team at Moravian (2008-11), serving as team captain as a senior. He was twice selected All-Centennial Conference on the defensive line.
The Collingswood, New Jersey, native graduated from Moravian in 2012 with a degree in accounting and completed a Master’s degree in liberal arts at Wake Forest in 2017.