 With All-American John Elway moving on to the NFL, Paye won the starting job at quarterback as a true freshman in 1983, and also started at point guard that year for the Cardinal basketball team; he was the last NCAA Division I athlete to start in both football and basketball as a freshman.In the 1984 football season, Paye shared time at quarterback with Fred Buckley, and became the starter for the 1985 and 1986 season.In 1986, he led Stanford to an record and an invitation to the Gator Bowl against the Clemson Tigers.