Nebraska Football: Adrian Martinez underdog to win Maxwell Award
Nebraska football quarterback Adrian Martinez received preseason accolades.
Over the last week, several Nebraska football players have made award watchlists. Friday, Nebraska football quarterback Adrian Martinez made a watchlist of his own. The quarterback was named to the Maxwell Award watchlist.
Martinez also made the watchlist in 2019. However, he could not live up to the lofty expectations that many gave him last season. He looked great in some games, and struggled in others. Now, he enters his junior season looking to put his sophomore slump behind him.
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He still didn’t have a bad season last year. He completed 59% this passes and threw for 1,956 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also proved fleet of foot on the ground, totaling 626 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.
He was part of a Nebraska offense that allowed him to rank third in total offense per game. He tallied 258.2 yards per contest on the season.
Quite honestly, it may be a lofty expectation to suggest that he can win the award. When he is at his best, he certainly can. However, Nebraska football figures to have a tough schedule this year. They will be challenged week in and week out. How Martinez plays game in and game out will determine the Huskers success in 2020.
As of now, I just want him to perform at a consistent and high level. It was frustrating to see him get in his own head at times. When he didn’t think, and just made plays happen via instincts, he was truly at his best. The offense functioned better, and he was able to really settle in and get comfortable within the offense. When he wasn’t comfortable, he looked shaken and rattled. Granted, the line did not make things easy on him at times last year.
The combination of Martinez’s struggles and the line struggles made it difficult for Nebraska to have any sustained success in 2019.
If he can get back to what he showed in 2018, that would be great for all involved. I have high expectations for him this year, and I truly believe he can put last year’s woes behind him.
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In any event, I am excited for football to return. Martinez will look to lead a very talented Nebraska football team. Now in Scott Frost’s third-year, the program itself needs to show some sort of improvement. The rest of the Big Ten is getting better, and Nebraska can’t afford to fall too far behind.