The Nebraska college football team started its spring training camp this week, and all eyes will on the situation at quarterback. After the first day of training, Coach Scott Frost revealed that he was evaluating the position, and he would allow competition for the starting job reports 247 Sports. That means that last season’s starter, Adrian Martinez, will have to share reps with the other quarterbacks on the roster during training camp. After two seasons with the Huskers, Martinez is yet to convince Coach Frost that he deserves to be the undisputed starter at the position.

Martinez regressed after a solid first year with the Huskers

Martinez showed promise in his first season. He threw for 2,617 yards and 17 touchdowns while completing 64 percent of his passes. However, he regressed slightly in his sophomore season, throwing for 1,956 yards and ten touchdowns while completing 59 percent of his passes. Martinez struggled with injuries and missed two games against Minnesota and Indiana. While Martinez was at fault for most of his poor play, the team did not protect him enough as he was sacked 23 times. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound quarterback had surgery in the off-season and has been cleared to participate in non-contact team activities during spring training.

He will have to convince the Husker’s coaching staff that he deserves to be the team’s starter moving forward.

Nebraska’s quarterback room is stacked with potential. Freshman Logan Smothers will be available to the team as well as junior Noah Vedral. The team also has an athletic option at the position in the form of Luke McCaffery. There was speculation that the team would use Luke as a wide receiver given their lack of depth at the position, but Coach Frost has said that he will evaluate all players at their usual positions.

Vedral and McCaffery impressed when they stepped in to replace Martinez during his injury absence.

Huskers in the next season

Martinez is still likely to be the starter for the Nebraska Huskers next season, but the coaching staff is trying to challenge him in a bid to improve his play. Mario Verduzco, Nebraska’s assistant quarterbacks coach explained some of Martinez’s weaknesses in a recent interview.

The young quarterback made some errant throws last season, and his coach is looking for an improvement on his awareness in the pocket. “There were times where he could’ve helped himself and helped the team with maybe being a little bit more disciplined with his eyeballs and where they go.” Nonetheless, the team’s head coach says that Martinez has taken their criticism in stride, and he is ready to fight for his position.

Scott Frost, who also played quarterback for Nebraska, said that Martinez understood that the coaches are just looking out for the team. “I can't say a lot other than he seems like he's in a good place right now. I've lived this. When a team struggles, the team's struggles are the quarterback's struggles, and the quarterback's struggles are the team's struggles.”
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