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LJ Martin celebrates with his BYU teammates following a touchdown against Cincinnati on November 22, 2025 at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati. | BYU Photo Cougar tales<\/p>\nBYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill made a very unusual plea this week leading up to BYU\u2019s final regular-season game at home against UCF. Hill called upon BYU fans to get out and be loud and impactful at LaVell Edwards Stadium at the early 11 a.m. kickoff.<\/p>\n
Hill knows a fast start is important Saturday, and this final home game, a celebration of the seniors on the team, is a huge step for the team to get to the Big 12 championship game in Arlington, Texas, Dec. 6.<\/p>\n
The Cougars are tied with Texas Tech atop the Big 12 standings with identical 7-1 league records. Both are 10-1 on the season. <\/p>\n
The Cougars are involved in a national debate about the fairness and accuracy of the CFP rankings, which have multiple two-loss teams ranked ahead of them, and the quandary of the committee possibly putting both Tech and BYU in the College Football Playoff if both survive this weekend with 11-1 records.<\/p>\n
But first comes Saturday\u2019s game against UCF, a team fighting for a sixth win to make it to a bowl.<\/p>\n
Cougar Insider predictions<\/p>\n
Question of the week: BYU\u2019s offense rode LJ Martin in a win over Cincinnati. Can offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick expect Martin to carry the ball 32 times in future games? What other alternatives might work? Predict the outcome.<\/p>\n
Jay Drew: Junior running back LJ Martin touched the football 35 times in the Cougars\u2019 26-14 win over Cincinnati last Saturday, which, on the surface, would seem to be too much. He had 32 carries for 222 yards and three catches \u2014 on three targets \u2014 for 44 yards. It was one of the more memorable performances I\u2019ve seen from a Cougar running back in the 18 seasons I\u2019ve been covering the program.<\/p>\n
It ranked right up there with the 286 yards that Jamaal Williams put on Toledo, the 210 yards Williams put on Wyoming in the 2016 Poinsettia Bowl \u2014 when Josh Allen was quarterbacking the Pokes \u2014 or the 266 yards Tyler Allgeier had against Virginia and Bronco Mendenhall in 2021.<\/p>\n
There was obviously more on the line in last week\u2019s game, as No. 11 BYU hunts a Big 12 championship game berth and possible ticket to the College Football Playoff. So I can\u2019t blame Aaron Roderick for giving Martin that many carries. Almost every one of them was needed \u2014 BYU has basically no depth behind Martin, although Preston Rex and Enoch Nawahine have been fairly serviceable when called upon.<\/p>\n
At this stage of the season, all bets are off. The priority has to be winning games at all costs, even if it requires Martin to get 30-plus carries per game. So I don\u2019t see anything changing. Maybe give him more than five catches and fewer than 30 carries. That might work.<\/p>\n
I remember Puka Nacua\u2019s final season at BYU, when coaches lined him up in the backfield because he was better than any of Allgeier\u2019s backups. Problem is, there\u2019s not a receiver on BYU\u2019s roster who is that multitalented.<\/p>\n
Prediction: BYU 24, UCF 10<\/p>\n
Dick Harmon: You run LJ Martin 32 times a game, he\u2019s going to get battered and possibly hurt. Yet, when Roderick does that, he answers the call, and the offense showed it is very effective when Martin is more involved (Cincinnati, TCU).<\/p>\n
Martin has run more effectively the past two games because he\u2019s been healthier than he was at Texas Tech. This past week, he gained 118 yards after contact. Pro Football Focus calculated Martin had 12 missed tackles forced in the Cincinnati game, the most among any running back in FBS in Week 13. It was the most in his three-year BYU career. His 35 MTF is the most in the Big 12 this season and fifth among Power Four running backs. He is a weapon.<\/p>\n
As challenging as it must be to keep Martin going and protect him, there is no question he is the prime reason Bear Bachmeier has become so effective, both as a runner and passer. This formula can\u2019t be disrupted in coming weeks. It works.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, Roderick needs to get BYU\u2019s passing game on track, because if the Cougars meet up with the Red Raiders in Arlington, they\u2019ll need more than Martin; they\u2019ll need an effective pass game threat.<\/p>\n
Prediction: BYU 31, UCF 10<\/p>\n
LJ Martin celebrates with his BYU teammates following a touchdown against Cincinnati on November 22, 2025 at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati. | BYU Photo Cougar tales<\/p>\n
In a crucial road trip two time zones away, BYU\u2019s football team defeated Cincinnati to climb into a tie with Texas Tech atop the Big 12 standings. Here are our stories of that victory:<\/p>\n
Sitake\u2019s culture plays role in BYU\u2019s 10-1 record (Jay Drew)<\/a>What Cincy coach said after losing to BYU\u00a0(Jackson Payne)<\/a>BYU just grinding out wins (Jay Drew)<\/a>LJ Martin put on a power beast-mode display (Dick Harmon<\/a>)3 difference-making plays for the Cougars (Dave McCann)<\/a>Latter-day Saint donations moved pantry officials (Jackson Payne<\/a>)Cincinnati AD apologizes for crowd chant (Jackson Payne<\/a>)Church donations, Cincy crowd derogatory chants (Camille Smith)<\/a>Cougar freshman distance runner Jane Hedengren finished runner-up to defending champion in the NCAA XC championships over the weekend.\u00a0Here is our roundup\u00a0<\/a>of BYU\u2019s women No. 2 finish.\u00a0<\/p>\n Kevin Young\u2019s No. 9-ranked basketball team had a blowout win over Wisconsin in the Delta Center. Here is my report. <\/a> <\/p>\n Women\u2019s soccer season came to an end after a Sweet 16 <\/a>NCAA tournament loss to top-seeded Stanford. <\/p>\n From the archivesFrom the X-verse<\/p>\n BYU not passing the \u201ceye test\u201d but going 21-3 over the last two seasons is an increasingly hilarious take<\/p>\n \u2014 Jonny Linehan (@jlinehan9) November 23, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n LJ Martin has established himself as one of the best RB in the country and a player NFL scouts have told me they LOVE. LJ going BEAST MODE for 222 yards on 32 carries and being BYU\u2019s leading rusher and receiver against Cincinnati only solidified that even more. He is special. pic.twitter.com\/RBia8EmP3b<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) November 24, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Extra pointsLast six BYU games most difficult in country (Sports Illustrated)<\/a>Analyst demands BYU, Utah be thrown out of CFP rankings (PFSN)<\/a>Fanalysts<\/p>\n Comments from Deseret News readers:<\/p>\n The CFP committee is only going to let the B12 and ACC have one team in the CFP PERIOD. If BYU would have beaten TT, TT would be on the outside looking in. The best thing that could happen to create a huge controversy is for BYU to beat TT in the CCG and have the committee have to justify leaving out TT; a team everyone has proclaimed one of the best team in college football.<\/p>\n \u2014AZCOOG1<\/p>\n At the end of the first half I was thinking where is this team going to get enough offense to win this game? I mean with all due respect to Kingston we really don\u2019t have much speed, we don\u2019t much depth at wide receiver, no depth at all at running back, who knows what we have at QB after a miracle find in Bear. Truly, for a team that\u2019s just gone through the gauntlet of a Big 12 season, it\u2019s amazing to be where we\u2019re at! What we do have is a stud of a running back, consistent, tough, shifty and always leaning down hill, a vastly underrated O Line, and a stout defense coached by a great D coordinator. All of it grounded and empowered by Kalani and his vision for the program. I can\u2019t say I love this team, but I respect … it. Let\u2019s just keep riding this train and see how far it will go! <\/p>\n \u2014 Knotholegang<\/p>\n Up nextNov. 26| 6 p.m. | women\u2019s volleyball | UtahNov. 27 | 3 p.m. | men\u2019s basketball | MiamiNov. 27 | 3:30 p.m. | women\u2019s basketball | Virginia Tech, Virgin IslandsNov. 28 | TBA | men\u2019s basketball | Dayton\/GeorgetownNov. 29 | TBA | women\u2019s basketball | Oregon State\/VanderbiltNov. 29 | 11 a.m. | football | UCFNov. 29 | 1 p.m. | women\u2019s volleyball | Colorado