Former Texas high school star LJ Martin to return to BYU for last season

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Former Texas high school star LJ Martin to return to BYU for last season

LJ Martin is about to do the rarest of things in this new era of college football.

Brigham Young’s star tailback, the Big 12’s offensive player of the year, and a Canutillo alum, is headed back to the Cougars for his senior year.

Dec 6, 2025; Arlington, TX, USA; BYU Cougars running back LJ Martin (4) runs with the ball during the first half against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Martin announced his decision Thursday, with an Instagram graphic that read: “Not done yet.” He did miss Brigham Young’s bowl game, the Pop-Tarts Bowl, to have surgery on his injured shoulder.

After that his coach Kalani Sitake said Martin was making a decision between coming back for his senior year to the only college he has attended or going pro. Martin opted to stay in Provo.

The 6-foot-2, 220-pound Martin had 1,305 rushing yards his junior year on 236 carries, scoring 12 touchdowns. He has led BYU in rushing in each of the past three seasons, he has 2,541 career yards with 23 touchdowns and needs 1,347 rushing yards to become BYU’s all-time leader.

A four-star recruit out of Canutillo, he rushed for 2,137 yards and 23 touchdowns and made 15 catches for 376 yards and six touchdowns as a senior in 2022. He initially committed to Texas Tech, switched to Stanford, then on signing day switched to BYU, where he has been exceptionally loyal ever since.

Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso’s LJ Martin to return to BYU football for senior season

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