Nebraska Football: Everyone is sleeping on Adrian Martinez

Adrian Martinez had a stellar freshman season with Nebraska football but yet everyone is still sleeping on him. What can we expect in 2019?

Nebraska began the 2018 season with an 0-6 record and it looked like the Scott Frost era was off to the most disappointing start possible.

After losing to Colorado and then Troy to start the season, people began to panic. Then it was a 46-point loss to Michigan, two-touchdown defeat against Purdue at home and 17-point loss to Wisconsin that truly had the panic button pressed by just about everyone.

Then the Cornhuskers gave Big Ten West contender, and eventual champion, Northwestern a run for its money, taking the Wildcats to overtime on the road before losing by a field goal. But they nearly pulled off the upset thanks to a solid game from a rising star.

Adrian Martinez passed for over 250 yards but did have two interceptions. That performance wasn’t a surprise as it followed up back-to-back 300-plus yard games from the freshman sensation. This close call against Northwestern would be just the start for Martinez and Co.

The Cornhuskers would win the next two games against Minnesota and Bethune-Cookman and nearly beat Ohio State, losing 36-31. In that loss, Martinez showed off with 266 yards through the air and a touchdown with no picks and a 66 percent completion rate along with 72 rushing yards and two more scores. He wasn’t afraid of the hostile road environment.

Martinez then turned that solid performance into two more wins before losing the season finale to Iowa by just three.

The only game of the season where he completed less than 50 percent of his throws was against a top-tier Michigan State defense on Nov. 17, but he still made enough plays to lead the Cornhuskers to a big win.

Now entering his sophomore year, Martinez has high expectations, but he still gets overlooked on a national level despite being one of the best dual-threats out there.

In fact, he passed for 2,617 yards and 17 touchdowns while rushing for 629 yards and eight more scores. He completed about 65 percent of his passes all while missing one game, and he’s just barely scratched the surface.

Martinez could very well be the best quarterback in the Big Ten in 2019 but he isn’t getting the accolades or attention of guys like Justin Fields, Shea Patterson or even Northwestern’s Hunter Johnson. That will all change soon enough.