X: @CoachAllenPayne
Instagram: @CoachAllenPayne
Years In Coaching: 12th season
Years at USF: 1st
Alma Mater: Auburn, 2014 - Bachelor’s degree in public administration.
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
Family: Wife, Tyrese; Daughter: Ava ; Sons: AJ & Tyler
NOTABLE:
• 2025 Jay Bilas Coaches Leadership Program and Top 25 Watchlist
• Silver Waves Media Rising Star (2022)
• In 2019 was recognized on the Under Armour NABC 30 Coaches Under 30 list
• Helped guide IUP to back-to-back conference regular-season championships and the PSAC Tournament title in 2019.
• Three-year starter and team captain at Auburn as a player
• Worked as a GA for Chris Mack at Xavier
Allen Payne joined Chris Mack’s first South Florida staff as an assistant coach in April of 2026. It marked a reuniting as Payne served his first coaching position as a graduate assistant on Mack’s Xavier staff.
Payne came to Tampa after four seasons as an assistant coach at Georgia State (2022-26), where he helped produce All-Sun Belt selections Cesare Edwards (2025) and Jelani Hamilton (2026). During that time, he was part of the 2025 Jay Bilas Coaches Leadership Program and Top 25 Watchlist.
Prior to his stint at Georgia State, Payne was an assistant coach at Elon (2019-22) for three seasons. He helped lead the Phoenix to the program's first appearance in the 2021 Colonial Athletic Association championship game in 2021, following a berth in the tournament semifinals for the first time in 2020. In 2022, he was named a Silver Waves Media Rising Star.
During his time on the Elon staff, Payne's focus on defensive scouting and game-planning helped lead to significant defensive improvement as the Phoenix lowered their points allowed per game from 76.4 ppg in the year before his arrival to 71.7 ppg in 2019-20 and then to 65.0 ppg allowed in 2020-21. That year, Elon led the CAA and ranked in the top 50 nationally in scoring defense.
Payne also played a key role in helping Elon student-athletes earn five All-CAA awards in his last two years.
Before joining Elon, Payne was an integral part of a very successful coaching staff at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) for two seasons (2017-19). He helped guide the program to back-to-back conference regular-season championships and the PSAC Tournament title in 2019. That earned the Crimson Hawks a berth in the 2019 NCAA D-II Tournament and a No. 2 overall final ranking with a 30-3 record, the third 30-win season in program history.
In 2019 Payne was recognized on the Under Armour NABC 30 Coaches Under 30 list.
Payne's responsibilities at IUP included recruiting, opponent scouting, player development and administrative duties.
Payne began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Xavier for two seasons (2015-17). In both seasons, he assisted the staff in leading Xavier to back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Elite Eight as a No. 11 seed in 2017.
As a collegiate player, Payne was a three-year starter at Auburn who was selected as a team captain in his senior season. He went on to play one year of professional basketball in the United Kingdom for the Sheffield Sharks.
Payne is a 2014 Auburn graduate with a bachelor’s degree in public administration.
The Cincinnati, Ohio, native was an all-state prep player Payne at Winton Woods High School.
Payne is married to the former Tyrese Tanner, who was an All-SEC women’s basketball standout at Auburn. The couple has one daughter, Ava, and one son, AJ.
Payne Coaching Career
2026- South Florida, Assistant Coach
2022-26 Georgia Southern, Assistant Coach
2019-22 Elon, Assistant Coach
2017-19 IUP, Assistant Coach
2015-17 Xavier, Graduate Assistant
