Anaheim (Calif.) Western athlete Ayden Payne flipped his commitment from San Diego State to Oregon State earlier today and broke down why he chose the Beavers. 

Payne originally committed to the Aztecs back in May following his first official visit. It was a bit of a surprise, only because he had four other trips set and we didn’t think he was going to pull the trigger so early in the process. 

Payne decided to take one last visit after all, and checked out the Beavers this past weekend. The talented two-way standout decided to flip his commitment and will now play his college ball in Corvallis. 

“The biggest reason why I chose Oregon State is because they have the number one Forestry class in the country,”  Payne said. “That’s what I plan to major in and and will set me up later in life to become  a firefighter. 

“Going in to the visit, I was pretty open minded but wouldn’t say I was leaning to Oregon State. I really didn’t know what to expect but I already I liked them a lot and had a good unofficial visit back in March. Once I was there, it just felt right and I decided I wanted to be a Beaver.”

DB Noble Thomas was Payne’s player host on the trip.

“Noble was a lot of fun to be around,” Payne said. “We connected really well and all the players on the team treated me great.”

Payne is a two-way player who had a solid junior season on both sides of the ball. He had 34 receptions for 793 yards and six touchdowns to go with 23 tackles and three interceptions.

“I’m coming in as a defensive back,” Payne said. “Coach Mac (Mike MacIntyre) said the plan is to play me all over the secondary. He likes that I can play safety but also move down and play nickel and corner.

“I really like the overall fit in their scheme and it’s similar to how I already play for my high school team.”