Sione Moa wants BYU’s defense to have a hard time telling who’s coming at them.
Actually, he wants the whole thing to look like one long extension of LJ Martin.
That’s the vision the 5-foot-10, 220-pound redshirt sophomore laid out as he gets back into the Cougars’ ground game this fall. When Martin comes off the field, Moa wants the drop-off to be barely noticeable.
“My role was to help lead block last year,” Moa said. “I hope that this year, when (LJ) is tired, I can step on the field and make sure that there is no gap between us - I am picking up where he left off. I’m hoping to mirror what he does on the field, mirror when I’m on the field.”
BYU had been building toward exactly that kind of pairing a year ago. Through the first three games, Martin piled up 342 rushing yards and a touchdown on 30 carries, while Moa added 96 yards and a touchdown on 17 attempts, along with five catches.
Then came the hit at East Carolina on Sept. 20, 2025.
Moa’s thigh injury became acute compartment syndrome, and the recovery knocked him out for the rest of the season. He did make it back for the Big 12 championship game, where he logged one carry and one reception for a combined 4 yards.
There was a stretch when he wasn’t sure he’d get back at all.
“There was a point last year when I thought I wouldn’t be able to see the field again,” he said. “So, to be able to come back a little early against Texas Tech, but fully now, it means a lot to me.
I grew up doing this. I’ve loved this sport since I was 8 years old.
To be able to come back on the field, doing what I love with the people I love most - it’s a great feeling.”
That comeback matters to BYU’s staff as much as it does to Moa. Running backs coach Harvey Unga and offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick are eager to have him back in the mix.
“Sione, like LJ, is a good runner; he’s a good blocker and he is a very good receiver,” Roderick said. “Sione is a super athlete - one of the best athletes on our team. He’s had some bad luck staying healthy, but if he’s healthy and can stay healthy, he will be a big part of our offense.”
The rest of the backfield gives that optimism some real weight. Martin led the Big 12 with 1,305 rushing yards last season and earned Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year honors. Bear Bachmeier added 527 rushing yards and a program-record 11 touchdown runs, picking up Big 12 Freshman Offensive Player of the Year recognition.
Moa sees that production and imagines an even more dangerous setup this fall, especially behind BYU’s big, experienced offensive line.
“It excites me. It’s something special.
Bear was only a freshman last year. Now that he has a whole of year of the offense down, he’s got everything, plus more.
It’s gonna be exciting,” Moa said. “I want those (run) packages out there so all three of us are on the field.
It feels amazing. It will be great to out there with LJ and Bear and have that triple threat.”
He doesn’t just want the Cougars to be productive on the ground. He wants them to be unpredictable.
“I want them to be confused. I want them to be thinking, ‘I don’t know what is going to happen - Bear could run it?
LJ could run it? Sione could run it?’”
Moa said. “I just hope that they don’t know what’s going to happen.”
For Moa, that uncertainty has a different meaning now. Last season, it was about whether he’d get back on the field at all. After Monday’s practice, the smile on his face made the answer obvious: he’s back, and he’s ready.
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For BYU, the appeal goes beyond just adding another name to the room. Kasper pointed to the programs medical and coaching staffs, including Kalani Sitake, as major reasons he landed there, which says plenty about how the Cougars are selling their pitch to incoming transfers. The next question is whether that confidence turns into production once he gets fully settled, because this is the kind of roster move that could matter a lot if the receiver group takes the step BYU is hoping for. [Read more 🡒]