Nebraska Football: What we’ve learned from Huskers spring ball so far

The 2021 season is going to be an important one for the entire Nebraska football program and particularly for head coach Scott Frost.

To put it simply, this is going on year four for Frost and he has to show some progress. It’s true that he had a massive rebuilding job in front of him when he arrived.

It’s also true that he’s underachieved. Both the 2018 and 2019 teams were good enough to get to a bowl game and didn’t for one reason or another.

Last season, Nebraska football started to build momentum and suffered a terrible loss at home to Minnesota. It just constantly feels like one step forward, one step back.

Nebraska football will hold its spring game on May 1 and this Saturday will be a practice open to the public. Leading into that, here’s what we have learned so far this spring.

Adrian Martinez looks different

In meeting with the media this week, offensive coordinator Matt Lubick talked about the notable difference when it comes to Adrian Martinez throwing the football. Here’s this via Hail Varsity:

"“The biggest difference, as Matt Lubick sees it, between this offseason and recent years is that Adrian Martinez is putting the ball right on the money when he rips it. The fourth-year quarterback has always had an NFL arm, Lubick said, but the coaching staff has specifically noticed a jump in Martinez’s accuracy and timing during spring ball.”"

Not only is Martinez throwing the ball better, but he also said that he feels better and he looks better in the clips I’ve seen. It also sounds like Nebraska is prioritizing deep throws more and Lubick said those deep reads are becoming more of an option and here are a few throws you can see for yourself.

With talented guys like Samori Toure and Xavier Betts, who have stood out so far this spring, along with Oliver Martin and tight end Austin Allen, the passing game looks promising.

However, not everything with the offense has been rosy.