| No. 9 – North Dakota State Bison | |
|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback |
| Class |  Redshirt Senior |
| Personal information | |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 233 lb (106 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Westside (Omaha, Nebraska) |
| College |
|
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
| Stats at ESPN | |
Cole Payton is an American college football quarterback for the North Dakota State Bison.
Early life
[edit]Payton grew up in Omaha, Nebraska and attended Westside High School.[1] He was named the Nebraska Gatorade Player of the Year after passing for 1,704 yards and 22 touchdowns while also rushing for 1,029 yards and 17 touchdowns.[2] Payton committed to play college football at North Dakota State.[3] He maintained his commitment despite late recruiting pushes from Iowa State and Nebraska to be a walk on.[4] He is a left-handed thrower.
College career
[edit]Payton played in three games during his true freshman while maintaining a redshirt on the season.[5] Payton was used in various play packages as a redshirt sophomore and rushed for 615 yards and 13 touchdowns while also completing 18 of 27 passes for 289 yards and three touchdowns.[6] Payton completed 10 of 16 passes for 123 yards with two touchdowns and one interception and rushed for 164 yards and one touchdown as a redshirt junior before suffering a season-ending injury.[7] Payton was named the starting quarterback going into his redshirt senior season.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ Pospisil, Stu (May 13, 2021). "Omaha Westside's Cole Payton named Nebraska's Gatorade football player of the year". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved September 10, 2025.
- ^ Sherman, Mitch (December 14, 2020). "Why Nebraska may regret missing out on Omaha QB Cole Payton: Upon Further Review". The Athletic. Retrieved September 10, 2025.
- ^ "Westside's Payton commits to NDSU". KETV.com. May 5, 2020. Retrieved September 10, 2025.
- ^ Kolpack, Jeff (December 15, 2020). "Omaha star QB says no to Nebraska, Iowa State; will say yes to Bison on Wednesday". The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. Retrieved September 10, 2025.
- ^ McFeely, Mike (September 7, 2023). "McFeely: 'Yeah, I can throw,' Bison backup QB Cole Payton says". The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. Retrieved September 10, 2025.
- ^ Peterson, Eric (April 14, 2025). "Bison quarterback Cole Payton ready to display his dual-threat ability". The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. Retrieved September 10, 2025.
- ^ McCarty, James (October 22, 2024). "Bison lose Jung, Payton for the season after suffering injuries in win over Jackrabbits". am1100theflag.com. Retrieved September 10, 2025.
- ^ Kolpack, Jeff (July 30, 2025). "After four years, Bison quarterback is finally Payton's place". The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. Retrieved September 10, 2025.