How LJ Martin's career night powered No. 13 BYU to 7-0 start

PROVO — Before No. 13 BYU's heart-stopping, edge-of-your-seat 38-35 win over Oklahoma State was made possible by Jake Retzlaff's 38-yard strike to Darius Lassiter with 10 seconds left, the Cougars first had to go to the ground.

LJ Martin's career-high 120 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries might wind up being a historical footnote on BYU's fifth 7-0 start in program history. But were it not for the sophomore making his fourth appearance, the Cougars may not have been 4-0 in Big 12 play when they woke up Saturday morning.

In the irony of many ironies, Ollie Gordon II returned for a season-best 107 yards and two scores for the Cowboys (3-4, 0-4 Big 12) — a herculean effort that also included a a receiving touchdown for his best scoring output against an FBS opponent since running for five touchdowns in a double-overtime victory over BYU in last year's regular-season finale.

But the Cougars had a ground game of their own, and when they needed it most — after throwing three first-half interceptions, including two by Retzlaff, who also completed 13-of-26 passes for 218 yards and two touchdowns — Martin was up to the task.

"Beast," said Lassiter, whose 129 receiving yards set a new career-high on his game-winning 35-yard touchdown catch. "When a guy like that is getting going, you've just got to keep riding the hot hand. He did a great job, from start to finish. O-line, as well, I'm so proud of those guys. We leaned on them the whole third quarter.

"He's got that chip on his shoulder, that dog mentality," Lassiter added, "and I'm super proud of LJ."

The Cougars more than doubled Oklahoma State's offensive yardage in the first quarter, but were tied at 7-7 after Hinckley Ropati's mistimed double-pass attempt was picked off by Parker Robertson.

Tanner Wall opened the second quarter with a pick of his own, intercepting first-time starting quarterback Garret Rangel's throw and returning it 47 yards to the 1-yard line. That's where Martin was more than happy to scurry over the line for the 14-7 advantage with 14:01 left in the half.

But Gordon ran for 80 yards and two touchdowns and added 22 yards and a touchdown on a pair of receptions to lift the Cowboys to a 21-14 halftime lead, with a little help from the 104-yard, two-interception first half of Retzlaff.

And yet, BYU didn't pull Retzlaff after that moment — even as he headed to the locker room holding his non-throwing shoulder after making a tackle on that last interception.

Ask around the locker room, and their confidence in the first Jewish starting quarterback in BYU history never faltered. For Sitake and offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick, they opted simply to give Retzlaff some help.

In this case, it meant the ground game.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pound gunslinger from Corona, California, emerged from the locker room and took over after a failed field goal. He led a seven-play drive entirely on the ground, with three carries by Martin including an 8-yard touchdown that tied the game at 21-all.

"LJ's a playmaker for us," Sitake said. "Offensively, I don't really tell them what to do; just get more points on the board. I thought they were doing some really good things.

"We're so close from being really explosive and unstoppable."

Behind an offensive line that included Bruce Mitchell in his second straight start at center and Austin Leausa at right guard, BYU recorded a season-high 255 rushing yards on 36 carries, a 7.1 yards-per-carry average.

That powered the Cougars to 14 more points in the third quarter, eclipsing the 83-point mark in the third frame this year. Only Ohio State (91) and North Texas (87) have more.

When Oklahoma State took a late lead on Alan Bowman's 6-yard toss to Brennan Presley with 1:13 remaining, the same confidence that allowed BYU to run on the Pokes never faltered. Retzlaff went to the air, out of necessity.

But even two plays before Lassiter's decisive gamewinner, the signal caller used a 27-yard run of his own to set up the moment.

"Two minutes left is my thing," he said. "Every time we did it in spring ball, I would get so excited. It was really cool to finish it like that."

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