Eddie Payne Head Coach: 6th Year

Eddie Payne is in his sixth year as the head coach of the USC Upstate men's basketball team and his 23rd overall. He has compiled a 350-287 record in 22 years of coaching.

Payne has returned the men's basketball program to national prominence, leading the Spartans to back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Tournament. His 2006-07 team finished with a 17-11 record, the fourth winning record and fifth non-losing mark in five seasons with the Spartans. In 2005-06, he led Upstate to a 20-10 record and the program's first-ever Peach Belt Conference Tournament championship. The Spartans advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year. Payne had a monumental year in 2004-05, returning Upstate to the top of the Peach Belt Conference by winning the North Division title and claiming a share of the Peach Belt Championship with South Division foe Kennesaw State. He also led the Spartans into the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 1997-98 season, advancing to the second round before losing to eventual national champion Virginia Union. On a personal note, Payne reached 300 career wins in his 20th year of coaching, earned Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year honors, and was named South Atlantic Region Coach of the Year.

In his first year as head coach of the Spartans in 2002-03, Payne restored USC Upstate to the level of success it has been accustomed to since the early 1980's. The 2002-03 Spartans recorded an 18-11 record, finished second in the North Division of the Peach Belt Conference, and advanced to the semifinals of the league tournament. In 2003-04, Payne led the Spartans to a third place finish in the North Division and claimed 14 wins on the season.

Payne came to USC Upstate after serving as the head men's basketball coach and assistant athletic director at Greensboro College for two years. Prior to that he was the head coach at Oregon State from 1995-2000, recording impressive victories over UCLA, Stanford, and Arizona in the 1998-99 season. Before his stint at Oregon State, he was the head coach at East Carolina from 1991-95. He began his head coaching career in the NCAA at Belmont Abbey from 1981-86. He also served as the college's athletic director.

Payne, a native of Charlotte, NC, is familiar with the Spartanburg area. He served as associate head coach at South Carolina from 1986-91 and was an assistant at Clemson from 1975-78. He also served as assistant coach at East Carolina from 1979-81.

Payne graduated from Wake Forest with a bachelor's degree in communications in 1973. He was a member of the Demon Deacon basketball team, earning team Most Valuable Player honors and continued his playing career professionally in France from 1973-74. He earned a Master's of Education degree from Clemson in 1978 while serving as an assistant coach. He graduated from East Mecklenburg High School and was an All-State selection in basketball.

Payne and his wife, Ann, have an 21-year-old son, Luke, who is a senior on the Spartans basketball squad. Mrs. Payne is a former head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide women's basketball team.