SELINSGROVE, PA - Susquehanna University Director of Athletics Sharief Hashim has announced the hiring of Jeremy Payne as the River Hawks' newest head coach for men's soccer. Payne, a local soccer product from nearby Middleburg, makes the short trip to Susquehanna after spending the last three years as the assistant coach at Bucknell University. 

Payne fills the role left by Jim Findlay, who was promoted to Associate Athletic Director earlier this year after serving as Susquehanna's men's soccer head coach since 1998. 

"We are thrilled to welcome Jeremy Payne to lead our men's soccer program," related Hashim. "Jeremy's experiences as a national player of the year, a successful Division III head coach, and a key contributor at Bucknell uniquely position him to lead Susquehanna soccer. What stood out throughout the process was his ability to connect culture, recruiting, and player development in a way that aligns with our values."

About Jeremy Payne:

"It is a privilege to take on the role of head men's soccer coach at Susquehanna University and to follow in the footsteps of someone who dedicated nearly three decades to the program. I'm very grateful to Sharief, Jim Findlay, the search committee, and so many others across campus who spent considerable time getting to know me throughout this process. Being originally from this area, with family close by on both my side and my wife's, makes this opportunity incredibly personal. Susquehanna stands out for its people, beautiful campus, and the strength of its academic programs, and I'm excited to help connect that experience with our soccer program. We will establish high standards and high expectations, with the vision of building a program that is both highly respected and highly successful. At the core, we want our student-athletes to have an outstanding experience—one that shapes their character, develops leaders, and creates meaningful, lifelong relationships."

Coming off of two successful NCAA Division III head coaching stops at Eastern University (Pa.) and Whitworth University (Wash.), Payne was enlisted to join the Bison coaching staff in 2023. After a two-win campaign that first season, the program achieved an incredible turnaround the following fall, sharing the Patriot League regular season title en route to the PL title, beating American in the semifinals on penalty kicks and defeating Colgate in the championship, 3-nil. The Bison finished with a 7-7-6 record in 2024, then improved upon that in 2025 at 9-4-5 to receive their first top-25 ranking since 1974. 

A native of nearby Middleburg, Pa., Payne was an All-State player and two-time Daily Item Player of the Year during his days at Midd-West. He went on to star at Division III power Messiah, where he was the 2012 and 2014 United Soccer Coaches National Player of the Year. A key member of Messiah's 2012 and 2013 national championship teams, Payne was a three-time First Team All-America selection, and he was the D3Soccer.com Midfielder of the Year in 2012 and Forward of the Year in 2014. 

Payne launched his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Eastern University in 2015, and after two seasons he was elevated to head coach. In his first season in 2017, he led the Eagles to a 13-4-2 record, and one year later his squad finished 18-3-2, won MAC Freedom Conference regular-season and tournament titles, and reached the final 16 of the NCAA Division III Tournament. Eastern was recognized as the United Soccer Coaches Mid-Atlantic Region Staff of the Year in 2018. Despite heavy graduation losses, his team repeated as conference champs and returned to the NCAA Tournament in 2019.

After compiling a 42-17-5 record during his three seasons as head coach at Eastern, Payne accepted the head coaching position at Whitworth in Spokane, Wash., in April of 2020. After a COVID-altered 2020-21 season, Payne's squads finished 16-17-5 over the last two seasons, when he coached 10 All-Northwest Conference players and two NWC Freshmen of the Year. 

From 2019-22, Payne also served as the director of player personnel and strategic planning as well as an assistant coach with West Chester United SC. He was involved with coaching the club's USL2, NPSL and U23 programs and worked with players from a number of Division I programs, including Notre Dame, Villanova, Penn State, Penn, Akron, and Princeton. The team finished 13-2-2 in its inaugural USL2 season in 2021, and he coached six players who were selected in the MLS SuperDraft and 12 who signed professional contracts. 

Payne returned to his native Central Pennsylvania in the spring of 2023 to serve as the director of coaching with the highly successful North Union United Soccer Club. During his time at Bucknell he served under head coach Dave Brandt, who was also a standout player and coach at Messiah and is a member of the school's Hall of Fame.