First-team selections included running back LJ Martin, center Bruce Mitchell and wide receiver Parker Kingston, who also received second-team honors as a punt returner. Cornerback Evan Johnson joined Kingston on the second team, while linebacker Jack Kelly received third-team honors.

Martin, who was previously named second-team All-American by Pro Football Network, was also voted by the Big 12 coaches as first-team All-Conference and Conference Offensive Player of the Year. In addition, he was named first-team All-Big 12 by both Pro Football Focus and Sports Info Solutions.

The 6-foot-2, 220-pound junior from El Paso, Texas, led the Big 12 in yards rushing (1,305), yards per game (100.4) and all-purpose yards (1,560). He was also second in the Big 12 in rushing touchdowns (12). Nationally, he is sixth in rushing yards and 14th in rushing yards per game.

Mitchell was previously honored by the Big 12 coaches as first-team All-Big 12 and honorable-mention Offensive Lineman of the Year. He was also named to the 2025 Pro Football Focus All-Big 12 Football Team. The 6-foot-4, 305-pound junior center from Kamas, Utah, was twice named to the PFF National Team of the Week at center.

Kingston was previously honored by the league’s coaches on the All-Big 12 Second Team as both a wide receiver and punt returner. On Dec. 1, he was honored as Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance in BYU’s win over UCF. Early in the season Kingston was named to the Paul Hornung Award Honor Roll for his performance in the Cougars’ win over West Virginia.

The 5-11, 185-pound junior from Layton, Utah, led the Big 12 in punt return yards (192), yards per return (12.8) and was the only Big 12 player with a punt return touchdown in 2025. As a receiver Kingston was fourth in the conference in receiving yards (848) and eighth in average yards per catch (13.9). He also finished the regular season with 1,143 all-purpose yards, good for seventh in the Big 12.

Johnson, who tied for the team lead with four interceptions, previously received All-Big 12 honorable mention by the league’s coaches. He was also named first-team All-Big 12 Conference by Sports Info Solutions.

Earlier in the season, the 6-foot, 185-pound junior from Monterey, California, was honored as the Thorpe Award National Defensive Back of the Week for his role in BYU’s win at East Carolina. Johnson finished the regular season tied for second in the Big 12 in interceptions and was tied for sixth in passes defended (10). He also led the BYU defense in pass breakups (7).

Kelly was previously honored by the Big 12 coaches as first-team All-Big 12 and received honorable mention honors as Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. The senior BYU captain finished the regular season third in the Big 12 in sacks (10), fourth in tackles for loss (13.5) and tied for fifth in forced fumbles (2).

The 6-foot-2, 242-pound senior from Kearns, Utah, led BYU in sacks, tackles for loss and forced fumbles, and was second in quarterback hurries (7). Kelly was also fourth on the team in tackles with 55 and was on the watch list for both the Chuck Bednarik Award and the Butkus Award.

Cougars take three wins at BYU December Invitational

The Cougars capped the final day of the BYU December Invitational with three event wins at the Smith Fieldhouse on Thursday.

The hurdles group was led by Zoey Bonds, Kali McEuen and Tia Brown in the 60-meter hurdles. After Bonds and Brown won their heats and McEuen took second, the trio went one, two and three in the final. Bonds won the event in 8.49, McEuen was second in a personal-best 8.58 and Brown ran 8.63 for third.

Paje Rasmussen moved up to No. 2 all-time in the 60m dash, clocking a 7.35 in the preliminary round. She later ran a 7.36 in the final to place second.

True freshman Mae Johnson powered to a first-place finish in her debut as a Cougar jumper. Johnson cleared 5-10.5 to win, six inches higher than second place.

McEuen, Cambria Hasler, Rasmussen and Madelynne Taggart took second in the 4x400m relay, crossing in 3:46.50.

Up Next

BYU will take a month off and return to competition Jan. 9-10 at the Weber State Indoor Invitational at the Stromberg Center Indoor Track.

UVU track sets new marks at BYU Invitational

PROVO, Utah — Four new school records were set on the second day of the BYU December Invitational on Thursday, highlighted by an impressive mile run from freshman Sila Kiplagat in his first collegiate indoor meet.

Kiplagat — who earned All-Region honors in cross country just a month ago — continued his extraordinary freshman campaign with a 4:03.20 converted mile time, passing Wolverine great Mo Guled for the No. 1 spot. Utah Valley has only seen one sub-four mile in program history, which was done last outdoor season by Alex Hartshorn.

Pierce Vittone headlined a strong contingent of runners in the 1k, setting a new school record with a converted time of 2:25.48 to finish second overall. Following closely behind, Noah Nielson, Cayden Tupper, Max Clemons, and Gannon Jensen all earned spots on the UVU top-10 leaderboard.

Ella Hopper added another school record to her collection, posting a time of 38.53 in the 300m to take third overall. On the men’s side Kade Thompson put up a blistering 33.50 to also set a school record in the 300m with the top overall time of the day. Gavin Stafford also secured a spot in the top 10 with a time of 34.65.

Jennaveve Bingham picked up the fourth school record of the day, posting a 1:24.76 time in the 600-yard. She was followed by Lyza Yetter, whose mark of 1:31.46 is good for No. 3 all-time.

The men’s heptathlon saw Neal Berkey close the gap on the top all-time mark with a point total of 5,474. Berkey improved on a previous-best of 5,382 in 2023, and needs 72 more points to match Michael McPherson’s record of 5,546 set in 2014.

Utah Valley’s three other heptathletes put up top-10 marks, led by Cole Johnson’s 4,774 to move from 10th to 6th all-time. Joey Trageser put up a strong performance in his first meet post-mission at 4,654 points to claim the No. 8 spot, and Ryan Rushton shined in his first collegiate meet to take No. 10 at 4,626.

A pair of transfer hurdlers showed out in their first races in Wolverine Green. Weber State transfer Payge Walz posted a time of 8.77 to claim the No. 6 all-time spot. Western Colorado transfer James Duncan blitzed his way to No. 5 with a time of 8.15.

Paisley Taylor had a strong day in her first college indoor meet, taking first in the mile with a converted time of 5:03.48. Taylor also came in second in the 3k with a converted time of 10:06.90 as the top attached runner.

The Wolverines will take a couple of weeks off for the holiday break before returning to action in the new year at Nevada and Weber State on Jan. 9-10.

UVU women’s soccer adds to 2026 roster

Utah Valley University head women’s soccer coach Chris Lemay has announced the addition of four Division I transfers for the Spring 2026 semester. Midfielder Londyn Lovell (Utah), defender Tess Livingston (Idaho State), forward Presley Ray (Weber State) and goalkeeper Lynette Bryant (BYU) have joined the Wolverines and will begin training with the program immediately.

“We set out to address some specific program needs in this transfer portal cycle. We feel like we have hit a home run,” Lemay said. “Presley, Tess, Lynette, and Londyn are all quality players that have real experience and will make immediate impacts starting this spring. We aim to restock, not rebuild and we feel like we have again achieved that goal. We are coming off another successful fall, but we continue to strive for more and the current players along with the new arrivals are hungry.”

Lovell arrives at Utah Valley after two seasons at Utah, where she appeared in 37 matches with 17 starts and logged 1,455 career minutes. She played in all 19 matches as a sophomore in 2025, making 13 starts and going the full 90 minutes three times while totaling 958 minutes. As a freshman in 2024, she played in 18 matches with four starts.

Livingston transfers to Utah Valley following a freshman season at Idaho State in which she earned Big Sky All-Conference Second Team honors. She started all 16 matches for the Bengals in 2025, logging 1,421 minutes and recording one assist as one of the league’s most dependable defenders.

Ray joins the Wolverines after a breakout 2025 season at Weber State, where she was named the Big Sky Newcomer of the Year. She appeared in 20 matches with 16 starts, scoring six goals with two assists for 14 points. She recorded four game-winning goals and logged 1,195 minutes, finishing the season with 42 shots and 16 shots on goal. She also scored the fastest goal in both Weber State and Big Sky history, finding the net 17 seconds into a win over Boise State.

Before her season at Weber State, the Highland, Utah native spent two years at Utah State.

Bryant brings veteran experience to Utah Valley after serving as BYU’s primary goalkeeper during its recent national prominence, including the Cougars’ 2022 College Cup run. She played two seasons at BYU after beginning her career at Washington State. With the Cougars, she appeared in 38 matches and logged