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Adrian Martinez primed to take next step in leading Big Red back to respectability
April 16, 2019
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With all the love coming to Adrian Martinez heading into his second year at the helm of a Nebraska football team that year two coach Scott Frost is trying to mold into a contender, anticipation is running high. Martinez showed enough as an 18-year-old true freshman in leading a 4-8 team that came on strong late season that he’s a serious Heisman candidate in 2019 in many people’s eyes. The hype machine is in full gear. Expectations in Big Red Land tend to get out of hand. But this is not your average young man. He appears to have the smarts, the physical tools and the desire to be the best player in Lincoln in a generation. And this marriage between player, system and coaches – head man Scott Frost, QB coach Mark Verduzco and offensive coordinator Troy Walters – truly appears to be a match made in heaven.
Adrian Martinez primed to take next step in leading Big Red back to respectability
©by Leo Adam Biga
Originally appeared in El Perico (el-perico.com)
A year ago Husker football fans were on an anticipatory high when Nebraska lured back native son and program legend Scott Frost as head coach after he led Central Florida to an unbeaten season.
Frost then fanned the flames by promptly landing highly sought-after dual-threat quarterback Adrian Martinez to lead the uptempo spread offense the hot new coach brought. As an 18-year-old true freshman, Martinez beat-out redshirt freshman and fellow Californian Trestan Gebbia for the starting QB job.
Though NU had a past QB (Taylor Martinez) with the same last surname, Adrian Martinez is believed to be the first Husker trigger-man of Hispanic heritage.
“I think it’s something that can make me unique,” Martinez said of his ethnicity. “Also, it’s something I wear with pride. A lot of people that are Hispanic, including my grandparents and other family members, take a lot of pride in me having the Martinez name on my back. I try to carry that and do it justice.”
The only heritage Frost was concerned about was Martinez being the program’s first franchise player since Ndamukong Suh. With Martinez as the foundation and spark-plug, NU sought to recapture glory after only 19 wins in three years under previous coach Mike Riley. NU’s slide from college football elite to also-ran has seen it go two decades without a conference title. The once solid program has shuffled through five head coaches and staffs in this unstable span.
While year one of the Frost-Martinez rebuilding era didn’t go to plan in terms of wins-losses (4-8), the coach, the team and the star showed enough flashes of excellence that hopes are high for 2019. So high that some even peg Martinez, who set school records en route to passing for 2,617 yards and rushing for 629 more in 11 games, as a Heisman Trophy candidate. If he stays healthy, analysts project NU posting a winning mark, contending for the Big 10 West Division title and going bowling for the first time since 2016.
It’s a lot to put on the shoulders of a 6-2, 220-pound sophomore with but one Division I season under his belt. Yet one thing Martinez has shown is a maturity beyond his years. The calm way he handles himself in interviews, at practices, on the sideline or in the heat of action is a characteristic oft-referred to by coaches and teammates. It goes back to his days at Clovis West High School In Fresno, where he helped coach the team rather than sulk while rehabbing an injury as a senior.
“I owe a lot to my parents and to my family as a whole for the way they brought me up and taught me how to go about things,” Martinez said. “Whether that be in school or talking to the every day person, it didn’t matter. There’s a right and there’s a wrong and there’s a fine line and my parents really taught me all about that.”
Back home, he didn’t think it was anything “special or unique” when his parents’ friends praised his wise-for-his-age demeanor. That changed during the recruiting process and his ballyhooed arrival in Lincoln.
“Then it started being pointed out more by people I didn’t know,” he said. “I take it as a high compliment and I think my parents do as well. I want to continue to be like that. I want to continue to exhibit those type of traits and just continue to make my parents proud.”
In a press conference to open spring football practice this month, Frost referred to Martinez’s continued progress in the offense under the guidance of QB coach Mark Verduzco. Frost also said that as a former Big Red QB himself, he’s trying to help Martinez navigate everything, good and bad, that comes with holding the signal-calling job in the glare of Husker Nation.
As for Martinez, the confidence he radiates is a function of his preparation.
“I think confidence truly comes from the work you put in day in and day out,” he said, “and if you truly believe you’re putting in enough work and you’re doing things the right way, then you’ll get the outcomes that you think you deserve and obviously earn.”
Despite his youth and inexperience, he’s seemingly never blinked in the face of of expectations or adversity.
“The confidence just came from working with Coach Verduzco and Coach Frost every day during fall camp, during spring ball, really putting in the time to try and learn the playbook and getting as good as I possibly could to be there for my teammates. That just translated into on-the-field confidence and obviously over time as I started to play a little bit more and gained a little bit more experience that confidence just grew.”
Though NU struggled mightily during an 0-6 start, the team remained cohesive and finished a strong 4-2 the second half of the year. That resilience, Martinez said, “really speaks to the character of the coaches and the quality of players we have here at Nebraska.”
“Things could have went differently. Things could have fallen apart there when things weren’t going our way. But we stuck together. The coaches kept believing in us, which I think is the most important thing. They didn’t try to degrade us or break us down. They wanted us to get better, We’re a team, we’re in it together. I think that point is what came across to the players and eventually over time we truly formed that bond and began forming that chemistry and finally put it out there on the field.”
Year two of the Frost regime and of Offensive Coordinator Troy Walters’ breakneck system is expected to start much smoother and reap more success. All eyes will be on Martinez to make things happen from the get-go. He denies feeling any pressure though.
“I would say pressure isn’t anything I’ve ever felt and I don”t feel it right now. I’m just confident we’re going to get the job done. I have faith in the people around me.”
Despite the loss of key offensive players to graduation in receiver Stanley Morgan, running back Devine Ozigbo and lineman Nick Gates, he believes enough returnees and newcomers will step up as new cogs.
After so much hype leading into last year, harsh reality quickly set in when the team opened 0-6. Whatever growing up the already mentally strong Martinez had to do, he did it on the fly, under great scrutiny.
“The toughest thing was going through that losing stretch. I encountered some things I wasn’t anticipating. Often I think you have this dream or image in your mind of how things are supposed to go, and a lot of times it doesn’t happen that way. But that’s nothing new. You have to learn to adjust and keep pushing forward.”
Nobody wants a repeat of last year’s disappointment and that’s why Martinez and his mates are taking lessons from what transpired in 2018.
“I truly believe things do happen for a reason and I think the experiences we went through last year will help us a ton going into this year. We experienced some tough losses and we know why we lost those games. Having that experience for the guys is going to be huge in just learning how to win.”
if anything, he said, the bumps in the road that occurred only fuel what the team wants to get done.
“If having the season we did at a place like Nebraska last year doesn’t motivate you to do better, I don’t know what will. I think this group of guys and me are hungrier than ever and we have some high expectations.”
Martinez likes the evolution he’s made in his own performance.
“I really believe I got better with each game. But I would say the Purdue game (a 42-28 loss) was probably a tipping point for me. It was a tough game with lot of penalties. I threw a critical interception there. But I felt confident with my ability to throw the ball and I think from that point there I felt there wasn’t a throw or a read I couldn’t make. It was just a matter of doing it effectively and doing it on time.”
Improvement, he said, needs to come in certain game situations where his decision-making and execution can make the difference between a bust or a big play.
“I think the part that can always use the most improvement is situationally – being better in all situations of the game. Knowing when to throw the ball here, knowing what the time is, being better with my reads, being quicker. I think you can never know too much about the offense. It means really diving into the playbook and spending time in the film room and that’s something I can improve on a lot from last year.”
After missing his final high school season and then going winless midway through his rookie college campaign, he doesn’t take anything for granted.
“You can’t be complacent. I don’t want this team to be and in no way do I want myself to be. I just have to keep that attitude and fall back on those people around me at the end of the day.”
Leadership is another area he’s looking to improve.
“You have to show up every day. Your effort has to be there. You have to be a leader, not only by example, but you have to have somewhat of a voice and make sure people are pulling their weight and you’re pulling your own.”
Martinez’s belief in himself is second only to his belief in quarterback guru Mark Verduzco, who came with Frost from Central Florida.
“I’m so appreciative of a guy like Coach Verduzco who really pushes me to be great on the football field. But he’s there for academics, for personal life, for everything. I couldn’t ask for a better coach and a better man to help guide me through this pretty critical process in my life.
“There’s always something I can improve on and Coach Verduzco makes sure I’m a aware of that and the fact that I can get better each day. The fact of the matter is we went 4-8 last year. I had some moments that were good, but I also had some moments that were bad. There’s a lot to get better at. There’s a lot of things still out there to accomplish. That’s really what drives me.”
Spring practice concludes with the April 13 Spring Game. Big Red opens the regular season at home August 31 versus South Alabama.
Read more of Leo Adam Biga’s work at leoadambiga.com.
Categories: Adrian Martinez, Athletes, Athletics, Football, Husker Football, Latino/Hispanic, Nebraska Football, Sports, University of Nebraska Football, Writing
Adrian Martinez, College Football, Cornhusker Football, Husker Football, Latino/Hispanic, Mark Verduzco, Nebraska Football, Quarterbacks, Scott Frost, University of Nebraska Football
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