Three More Vacancies Filled on Cal Poly Football Coaching Staff
2/28/2023 9:51:00 AM | Football
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Ryan Payne, a graduate assistant coach for the offensive line at Oregon State from 2018-21, is Cal Poly's new offensive line coach and running game coordinator.
In addition, Brandyn Thompson has been hired as the Mustangs' cornerbacks coach, accepting his first Division I coaching assignment after working the past six years as executive director for DB Select, a football training program for defensive backs in Sacramento. He was defensive backs coach for Sacramento City College last fall.
The new appointments were announced Tuesday by first-year Cal Poly head coach Paul Wulff.
Wulff also finalized the coaching duties for his staff.
Sheldon Cross will serve as the offensive coordinator and running backs coach while Erik Meyer is the passing game coordinator, quarterbacks coach and pro liaison. Casey Petree will coach the tight ends and also serve as special teams coordinator and summer camp coordinator.
Also on offense, Asa Jackson moves from the cornerbacks to wide receivers and also serves as the graphics liaison while Brandon Gibson and Everrette Thompson are in charge of offensive quality control. Gibson, a former wide receiver at Washington State who played in the NFL from 2009-15 with the Rams, Eagles, Dolphins and Patriots, also will be in charge of offense academics.
On defense, Cody vonAppen retains his defensive coordinator duties and will coach the safeties while Will Plemons has been elevated to Assistant Head Coach, retains his roll as co-defensive coordinator and will coach the defensive line.
Josh Letuligasenoa will assist with the defensive line and also serve as academic liaison, admissions/compliance liaison and recruiting coordinator while Jake Casteel, who coached the defensive ends last year, will coach the linebackers this fall and coordinate kickoffs on special teams.
Matty Hazelwood remains with the football team as defensive quality control and will handle defense academics as well. Another defensive quality control member remains to be hired.
During the 2022 season, Payne was offensive line coach at Idaho State. He was hired last month as offensive line coach for second-year Southern Utah head coach DeLane Fitzgerald.
At Oregon State, Payne worked alongside run game coordinator/offensive line coach/associate head coach Jim Michalczik.
We're very excited to add Ryan to our coaching staff," said Wulff. "He is an extremely hard worker and very dedicated to developing offensive linemen. His past experiences will match what we want to accomplish on offense. He will recruit extremely well and bring great thoroughness in all aspects to our program."
Payne arrived at Oregon State from Sacramento State, where he served as an offensive line graduate assistant coach. He helped the Hornets post a 7-4 record in 2017 and they were ranked 14th in the nation for rushing and fifth in scoring.
Prior to his stint at Sacramento State, Payne spent three years as a coach at his alma mater of Dickinson State in North Dakota. He held various capacities, including offensive line coach/recruiting coordinator in 2016 and fullbacks and tight ends coach from 2014-15, helping the Blue Hawks to 24 victories.
He was a three-year starting offensive lineman at Dickinson State, helping the Blue Hawks to a pair of league titles and NAIA playoff appearances. In addition, he was the 2013 team captain and was a three-time academic all-league honoree.
Payne earned bachelor's degrees in Mathematics Education (Cum Laude) and Exercise Science (Cum Laude) at Dickinson State and a master's degree in College Student Services Administration at Oregon State.
Payne, who also will handle on-campus housing duties, and his wife, Alexxus, have one daughter, Lilly.
Thompson played football at Boise State from 2007-10, earning 146 total tackles (95 solo) with seven for lost yardage in 48 games. He also made 13 interceptions in his Bronco career, returning one for a touchdown in his junior season, and earned Academic All-American and All-Western Athletic Conference honors, helping the program to a 47-5 record in a four-year span.
Thompson was drafted in the seventh round of the 2011 National Football League Draft by Washington. He played two seasons for the then-Redskins (now Commodores) followed by the Ottawa RedBlacks in 2014 and 2015, contributing to a Grey Cup appearance in 2015, and the Edmonton Eskimos in 2016 and 2017.
Primarily a cornerback, Thompson made two tackles and recovered a fumble with the Redskins in 2011 and intercepted eight passes in the Canadian Football League -- four with Ottawa in 2014, three more with the RedBlacks in 2015 and one with Edmonton in 2016. He played 19 games for the Eskimos in two seasons, recording 45 defensive tackles and one fumble return for a touchdown, adding three defensive tackles in two playoff games.
A CFL All-Star who helped Edmonton reach the Eastern Conference Finals twice, Thompson was released by the Eskimos prior to the 2018 season after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon in an October 2017 game against the Calgary Stampeders.
In addition to his coaching duties, Thompson also will handle classroom scheduling.
"I feel very fortunate in bringing Brandyn on board to coach cornerbacks for Cal Poly football," said Wulff. "He has a long history of playing and teaching experience that will add a great deal to our defense. He's also very connected in the recruiting world, particularly Northern California. He has worked for and played for tremendous coaches and programs. I'm looking forward to seeing him work with our guys in the secondary."
Thompson graduated from Franklin High School in Elk Grove in 2007, lettering in football, basketball and track. In football, he was an all-league and all-area defensive back and wide receiver.
A graduate of Rogers High School in Puyallup, Wash., Gibson caught 182 passes for 2,756 yards and 17 touchdowns at Washington State, earning first-team All-Pac-12 honors as a junior and honorable mention praise as a senior under Wulff. He also played basketball for the Cougars in the 2005-06 season before focusing his attention on football. Gibson played in the 2009 Senior Bowl.
A sixth-round draft pick of Philadelphia in 2009, Gibson caught 233 passes for 2,711 yards and 13 touchdowns in 76 games played. He also played in The Spring League in 2017.
Gibson then turned to coaching, first serving as a wide receivers coach at Central Washington from 2017-19 He was the offensive coordinator at Kentwood (Wash.,) High School for the 2020-21 seasons and served as a quality control specialist for the offense, focusing on the wide receivers, at Colorado for the 2022 campaign.
Gibson completed his bachelor's degree in social sciences with an emphasis in history in 2019 at Washington State while coaching at Central Washington.
