Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 39-14vs SE Louisiana | 18 | 69 | 3.8 | 1 | 12 | |
| Wk 2 | L 24-28@ Tulane | 15 | 73 | 4.9 | 1 | 18 | |
| Wk 3 | W 41-36vs Ohio | 21 | 80 | 3.8 | 1 | 21 | Season-high 80 yds |
| Total | 54 | 222 | 4.2 | 3 | 21 |
PJ Martin
South Alabama doesn't have to wonder what it gets from PJ Martin; that certainty is the whole point of him.
5′10″ · 205 lb · New Orleans, LA
CFB Index 41 · #214 of 326 RBsHigh confidence
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
222
rushing yards · 2026 · through week 3
3 games into 2026 so far
Swing playSwung South Alabama from 57% to 79% to win.South Alabama at Tulane · 28-24
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Senior running back for South Alabama. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to South Alabama in 2023.
How he plays
Does a little of everything without one standout trait.
TD rate: 66th percentile.
The full scouting readPJ Martin
Filling the Shoesas of 2026-09-22
PJ Martin is a cornerstone for South Alabama — measured against the line he joined.
222RUSH YDS3RUSH TD54CARRIES
Read the story so far
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-09-22
His career
He was on the field for 4 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
20235 games
- Signed with South Alabama3-star out of De La Salle
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
South Alabama
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coaches2023
South Alabama
Coaching transition mid-career: Kane Wommack → Major Applewhite. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | South Alabama | 54 | 222 | 4.1 | 3 | -- |
| 2025 | South Alabama | 60 | 326 | 5.4 | 2 | -- |
| 2024 | South Alabama | 13 | 98 | 7.5 | 1 | -- |
| 2023 | South Alabama | 12 | 75 | 6.2 | 1 | -- |
| Career | 139 | 721 | 5.2 | 7 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | South Alabama | 5 | 34 | 6.8 | 0 | -- |
| 2025 | South Alabama | 5 | 49 | 9.8 | 0 | -- |
| 2024 | South Alabama | 3 | 33 | 11.0 | 0 | -- |
| 2023 | South Alabama | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 15 | 140 | 9.3 | 0 | -- |
Game log
Game by game
PJ Martin's 2026 production
Point color shows the opponent's defensive strength that week (red = weaker defense, blue = stronger) — dashed line is this player's own season average.
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 39–14
vs SE Louisiana
69 rush yds (18 car) · 1 TD
Dominant 25-point win at home against SE Louisiana.
With K. Phillips — 66 rush yds (13 car) · B. Davenport — 154 yds · 1 TD · 0 INT · 23 rush yds (11 car) · 1 TD
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 1 · SE Louisiana · 4&2 · Q2 · EPA -4.24No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush middle for 1 yard loss to the USA 49 (#54 A.Alexander; #10 J.Okoye), TURNOVER ON DOWNS
- Week 1 · SE Louisiana · 4&2 · Q4 · EPA +2.87PJ Martin 3 Yd Run (Davis Little Kick)
- Week 2 · Tulane · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA +2.57(01:38) No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush middle for 16 yards gain to the TLN00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 01:31, 1ST DOWN #35 D.Little kick attempt good (H: #40 A.Pulkkinen, LS: #44 B.Turner)
- Week 3 · Ohio · 3&1 · Q3 · EPA +2.45(08:04) No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush middle for 1 yard gain to the OHIO00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 08:05 #35 D.Little kick attempt good (H: #40 A.Pulkkinen, LS: #44 B.Turner)
- Week 3 · Ohio · 2&11 · Q2 · EPA +2.27(06:19) No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush left for 14 yards gain to the USA 44 (#8 B.Dillon), 1ST DOWN
- Week 3 · Ohio · 2&6 · Q4 · EPA +1.69(13:22) No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush right for 21 yards gain to the OHIO31 (#21 R.Jackson, Jr.), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Tulane · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +1.50(13:03) No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush middle for 18 yards gain to the TLN43 (#2 D.Agu; #7 K.Adams III), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Tulane · 2&3 · Q3 · EPA -1.31(00:44) No Huddle-Shotgun #4 B.Davenport pass complete short left to #0 P.Martin caught at TLN41, for 2 yards loss to the TLN37 (#27 C.Green)
- Week 2 · Tulane · 1&10 · Q4 · EPA -1.30(07:30) No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush middle for 1 yard loss to the USA38 (#51 R.Sterling)
- Week 2 · Tulane · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA -1.16(02:47) No Huddle-Shotgun #0 P.Martin rush middle for 0 yards to the USA45 (#1 J.Tchienchou)
2026 snapshot
Since week 2: +80 rushing yards, +1 rushing TD.
Season context · Team result + system
2023South Alabama7-6HC: Kane Wommack · Balanced
2024South Alabama7-6HC: Major Applewhite · Balanced
2025South Alabama4-8HC: Major Applewhite · Run-heavy
2026South Alabama2-1HC: Major Applewhite · Run-heavy, fast tempo
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score + play-by-play EPA percentiles
High confidence
Concern: yards / carry (14th percentile).
Real play-by-play efficiency
Box-score rates (7)
Season trend
Last seasonThis season
EPA / carry
45th → 30th percentile
Success rate
17th → 34th percentile
Explosive rate
35th → 55th percentile
Yards / carry
44th → 14th percentile
TD rate
62nd → 66th percentile
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season. Most bars are box-score rates; EPA / success-rate bars are computed from real play-by-play (offense only — no defensive EPA model exists yet).
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
54 of 54 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
41%54 carriesStuffed
0 or fewer yds13%of carries
7 carries
Grind
1–3 yds48%of carries
26 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds26%of carries
14 carries
Explosive
10+ yds13%of carries
7 carries
5 of 6 (83%) converted on 3rd/4th & short (≤2 to go) · 2 of 5 (40%) scored from inside the 5-yard line
4.1 yds/carry on 54 carries · 13% explosive (10+ yds) · 41% success rate.
Splits & context
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home2g | 74.5 | 3.8 | 1.0 |
| Road1g | 73.0 | 4.9 | 1.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 74.0 | 4.2 | 1.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Major Applewhite
Pass share
34.6%
79 pass / 149 run
Plays / game
76.0
3 games
Team sack rate
2.2%
90 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, fast tempo.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-Sun Belt
Based on 2025: #22 of 36 Sun Belt RBs
- #1Wayne Knight
- #21Bill Davis
- #22PJ Martin
- #23Jevon Edwards
How the All-Sun Belt estimate is computed
15% estimated, 95% confidence interval 13–17%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
How he plays
Play style
Does a little of everything without one standout trait.
CFB Index positional classification
Starter
The No. 1,924 recruit in the country is carrying the ball in the Sun Belt as a senior.
DNA match
Player DNA
Balanced Back
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
RB
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Cam McDaniel’s 2014 season.
Matches Cam on
Rush TD rate
Yards / reception
Height
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Kejon Owens's senior season at Florida International (2024).
82%match
All-Conference USA
Matches Kejon on
Total rush EPA (college ability)
Weight
Height
Differs from Kejon on
Yards / reception (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like PJ Martin
The backfield · South Alabama
- #3Keenan Phillips622 rushing yards · 2025
- PJ Martin326 rushing yards · 2025
- #21Trae'von Dunbar41 rushing yards · 2025
- #15Chris Holifield Jr.no box-score line yet
- #23Iverson Celestineno box-score line yet
7 more on the roster · South Alabama team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology