Most people outside of college football fans have probably never heard of Martell Irby. In fact, there are probably a lot of college football fans themselves – outside of UCLA and Arizona – who don’t really know who Martell Irby is. And that’s fine. But Irby gave an interview after Arizona defeated Oklahoma in the 2023 Alamo Bowl that might make people want to know a little bit more about him.
Irby was a star high school player from San Diego who played for four years at UCLA. In 2022, he was involved in a serious car accident that totaled his vehicle and gave him a concussion.
Following that injury, Irby’s life started to fall apart in more ways than one. He suffered from depression, he lost all interest in football, and he even felt distant and isolated himself from his family. This culminated with him just simply up and disappearing one day, leaving his belongings behind and no one knowing his whereabouts.
Fortunately, his story didn’t end in tragedy. He resurfaced and recorded both a music video (Irby has been a musician his whole life and attended the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts) and a confessional about the mental health struggles he was facing:
(Warning: NSFW language)
Martell Irby: Lost After Graduation
Irby did graduate from UCLA, but still felt lost, even though he was an honor roll student, has many interests outside of football, and has been a talented musician his whole life. His struggles were not over.
Because of his accident, he still had a year of eligibility to play college football. He called a coach at Arizona, Johnny Nansen, and asked if he could come play at Arizona for his last year. Nansen said he would be welcomed, but not guaranteed a scholarship.
So, Irby moved to Tucson, lived out of his car, and even took a job at a gym, so he would have a place to shower. He promised his coaches and teammates that he would lead by example with his hard work and dedication to them. At the beginning of the season, the coaches rewarded him with a scholarship for his final season. Later, his teammates elected him as one of their captains.
Success At Arizona
Irby’s football journey culminated with his Alamo Bowl performance against Oklahoma, where he recorded seven tackles, forced a fumble, and had an interception. After the game, he was interviewed by ESPN sideline reporter Cole Cubelic, where Irby was able to talk about his story.
“Glory be to God. I can’t thank Arizona enough, I can’t thank my brothers enough. I just want to enjoy this moment with my teammates, with my family, and just embrace it, man. I couldn’t have scripted this any better. I’m just going to take it for what it is, embrace it, and I’ll worry about tomorrow tomorrow. I’m just thankful. I couldn’t have pictured this.”
“Now, looking back, I see that I needed [a team] more than ever … being a part of something bigger than myself. I can’t thank these people enough … we just love each other, that’s all it is, that’s all it comes down to.”
– Martell Irby
Praise For Irby’s Story
Irby might not be a prototypical NFL player (he is only 5’9″), but many people had a lot of great things to say about him, regardless of his football future.
Martell Irby may have a future in football, he may have a future in music, or he may have a future in something else entirely (he is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Real Estate Development at Arizona). But he does have a future.
And that is something a lot of people – including himself – may not have been so sure about even a short year ago.