Although it’s often difficult to assess exactly how someone’s feeling inside, I think I’m reading Adrian Martinez correctly.
The fleet Nebraska quarterback is of sound body and mind entering his junior season.
He’s a three-time captain, a respected leader and face of the program.
He’s clearly comfortable in his environs.
“Just incredibly proud and honored,” he says of his 2021 captaincy.
The sound mind part seems particularly germane this week because of the unknowns attached to Saturday’s game at Illinois. You’ve probably heard that the Illini have a new coaching staff. That means Husker coaches have to engage in some guesswork as to exactly what they’ll see from first-year head coach Bret Bielema’s crew.
“Every position, especially the quarterback position, is going to have to react on gameday to something we maybe didn’t show them in practice,” Nebraska offensive coordinator Matt Lubick said earlier this week.
“That’s just part of football, especially in the first game.”
The scenario can be unnerving. But it’s difficult to imagine Martinez getting overly rattled. He’s a grown man at this point in his up-and-down career. He’s experienced plenty of challenging moments.
“I’m not that old of a guy,” he cracked.
He seems to be having a ball. He seems at peace with his place in the Nebraska football realm.
He’s seemingly become used to the heavy weight of expectation at NU, maybe even comfortable with it.
He keeps it in perspective. That’s probably the key.
He’s been around here for a while now, but his story is far from over.
Is the best yet to come?
“He’s always been a leader,” Lubick said. What’s more, “I think he did a lot of good things in the summer to get his body in even better shape than it has been. We ask our quarterbacks to run sometimes, and he doesn’t get tired. He pushes the pace of practice, pushes the tempo. He’s also throwing more accurately than he’s thrown in the past. So he’s really taken every part of his game up another notch.”
Will Nebraska fans really see the improvement Saturday? When it comes to Martinez, there obviously are plenty of skeptics. His best year was his freshman season. That’s undeniable. It’s also undeniable that when he turns the corner on a quarterback run, his speed would be best described as breathtaking.
Media was allowed to watch one full practice during the spring. So, I saw his “updated” speed firsthand. With a streamlined frame, he’s faster, no doubt about it.
His career statistics also get your attention. He’s one of only four active FBS quarterbacks who enter the 2021 season with 5,000 career passing yards and 1,500 career rushing yards.
He stands as the school’s all-time leader in total offensive yards per game (264.4), 400-yard total offense games (five) and 300-yard total offense games (13).
He completed a school-record 71.5% of his passes in 2020, a mark that in the Power Five trailed only Mac Jones of Alabama (77.4) and Zach Wilson of BYU (73.5).
Yes, we know, Martinez downfield passing needs work. Lubick said the California kid’s accuracy has improved. We’ll see.
You can bet Martinez worked hard to improve. He’s invested in his team. If he’s not, he’s faking it incredibly well.
“From a leadership standpoint, which is where we really need him, he’s being a little more vocal,” Lubick said. “Our guys look to him as a leader. The biggest thing about being a leader is leading by example. It’s being the first one out there, taking charge, going 100 miles per hour. He’s doing all that. I’m excited to see where he can take us as our leader.”
Yes, he’s pushing the pace. He’s living out a dream of being a starter in a big-time program, he said.
That said, he’ll have butterflies in his stomach Saturday morning, he said. He can take comfort in the fact he’s twice blistered Illinois: In Nebraska wins in 2018 and 2019, he was 46-for-68 passing for 618 yards and rushed for 118 yards. In last year’s game, he played mop-up duty behind starter Luke McCaffrey in a 41-23 loss in Lincoln.
I’ve said it before: I think we’ll see marked improvement from Martinez. It’s his show now.
Being of sound body and mind certainly helps matters, particularly in a game full of unknowns.
