Standing on the sidelines of a basketball court or a football field, Coach Irvin Payne’s positive energy is just as noticeable as his towering height.
This is Payne’s fifth year coaching JV girls basketball at WJ. He grew up playing basketball, football and track, and was inspired by his mom, who played basketball overseas. Payne eventually pursued college basketball at Saint Augustine’s University in Raleigh, North Carolina.
“I played basketball, basically, all my life, and the funny thing is, I’ve always been around girls’ basketball,” Payne said. “My mom played, everybody in my family played, so it made [the decision to coach] easy.”
Coaching takes up a significant amount of time during his school day, which he sometimes uses to plan out the more strategic aspects of his coaching methods.
“[A day in my life looks like] work, basketball, and then eating, then writing a scout report, collecting film for what the team should look at, and sleeping,” Payne said.
Practices often involve an hour of film once a week, with the rest of the time dedicated to training and drills. All of this comes with hopes for a third straight winning record season.
In addition to coaching girls’ JV basketball, this was Payne’s first year as an assistant coach for the girls’ varsity flag football team.
“I went and coached, just seeing that Coach [Butch] Worden needed help, I honestly didn’t think I would have as much fun as I did,” Payne said. “I already knew about football from playing, but, you know, teaching girls and showing them how to play flag [football] was probably the best experience.”
Along with head coach Worden, Payne led the team to an 8-2 record in its second year, but lost to Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School in the second round of regional finals – a big accomplishment and the furthest the team has gotten so far.
“I would describe him as very positive, always very happy; he kind of just goes with the flow,” freshman Lily Marquardt said. “When I played flag [football] with him, he was always very chill, and honestly, nothing really surprised him; [he was] very nonchalant.”
Payne stands out as a coach through his ability to connect with his players, fostering trust and communication that translates on the court or field.
“He gets us all interested and wanting to have energy to support our team,” freshman shooting guard Addie Brush said. “[Earlier in the season], we couldn’t score more than 10 baskets, but during the last game we scored 57 [points].”
His calm coaching style resonates with the student-athletes and motivates them to bring their best to the game.
“He’s very down to earth and he doesn’t really get angry,” JV girls basketball captain and varsity flag football member sophomore Tatiana Galeano said. “He’s very honest, […] but he won’t be rude about it.”
Outside of coaching and school, Payne has been working on other hobbies. He journals, does puzzles and has recently started listening to country music, as well as watching horror movies and memorizing every line from his favorite movie, Harlem Nights.
“A lot of people will look at me and think that I’m this big 6’5’ scary guy, but I’m actually very approachable,” Payne said.
