Cole Payton is one of those names that sneaks up on you if you’re not paying attention. Small school. Limited starts. Left-handed quarterback. Easy to overlook if you’re skimming box scores. But once you actually watch him and dig into the season he just put together, it’s hard not to come away impressed. Payton just finished a record-setting year at North Dakota State and put himself firmly on the NFL radar for the 2026 Draft. He’s not a finished product, but the upside is very real, especially in a quarterback class that doesn’t have many players separating themselves. A Late Bloomer Who Made It Count This past season was Payton’s first full year as the starter, and he made the most of it. He led North Dakota State to a 12–1 record and played with a level of efficiency you don’t usually see, regardless of level. He completed nearly 72% of his passes, threw for 2,719 yards with 16 touchdowns and only 4 interceptions, and consistently took care of the football. What really jumps out is how clean the overall production looks when you factor in what he did with his legs. Payton rushed for 777 yards and 13 touchdowns, averaging 5.7 yards per carry. He wasn’t scrambling just to survive. Designed runs, short-yardage toughness, red-zone scores. He became a legitimate problem for defenses once plays broke down. By the end of the year, he finished as the highest-graded quarterback in the FCS and set school records for efficiency and total offense per play. That doesn’t happen by accident. How […]
Cole Payton: The Small-School Quarterback You Need to Know
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