Tate Martell retired from football after UNLV stint, per report – 247Sports
UNLV quarterback Tate Martell has retired from playing football, according to Joe Arrigo. Martell plans to focus on business ventures moving forward after an injury limited his 2021 season to just two appearances.
Prior to UNLV, Martell played at Ohio State and then Miami. With the Buckeyes, Martell appeared in six career games in one season in 2018, completing 23 of 28 passes for 269 yards with one touchdown. He also rushed for 128 yards and two scores on the ground. Martell appeared in three games for Miami in 2019 before opting out of the 2020 season.
Martell is a former 247Sports Composite four-star recruit out of Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman. He was also the No. 56 ranked overall player and the No. 2 ranked dual-threat quarterback in the recruiting class of 2017.
Martell entered the transfer portal for the second time back in January of 2021, when he released a video giving off an emotional statement regarding his decision to leave Miami, after originally coming over from Ohio State.
“I never learned how to really push myself until I did it at Ohio State,” Martell said. “I learned it from JT Barrett, Joe Burrow, Dwayne (Haskins). I learned what the standard was for a quarterback. I had to go through what I went through this last four years to get where I’m about to be. The pain it has caused is my motivation every day. This story is going to change from what it’s been to this point. Now it’s just going to take one person to believe in me. I promise it’s going to be one of the best decisions they ever make.
“What I’m building right now is for that team. Everything I’m going through is for that team. I’m refining myself daily to become the person that everybody needs me to be, my family, my friends, my city. It’s all for them. I’ve got nothing to lose and everything to prove.”
After losing out on the starting job this season, UNLV coach Marcus Arroyo spoke to the media about Martell’s role moving forward, at least in September.
“I think you anticipate the fact that you can’t (assume), ‘OK, great, he’s gonna know the whole thing after a week, one,’” Arroyo said. “No. 2 is he’s working through some things that we know injury-wise are going to be progressing or hampering him a little bit? Yeah, we have to take care of that and manage it the best we can, and he’s not 100%. And we have to be smart. … We’re not going to burden our team or burden an individual or burden our growth by saying, ‘Hey, you’ve got to go do it full speed. Here’s everything to get done.’ So, we’ve got to be smart, day to day, and figure out exactly what he can handle. And if he can give us a chance, then let’s roll. I think there’s some things he can do to help us when he’s healthy. He feels confident. That’s going to take time and rest, too, which I’m excited about.”
Nick Kosko contributed to this report.
