The interior of Nebraska’s offensive line is going to be a regular turnstile for the duration of spring practice.
Position coach Greg Austin has known as much since arriving here, considering all of NU’s starting experience in the middle from 2017 — Michael Decker (knee) and Cole Conrad (shoulder) — is shelved and recovering from offseason operations.
The picture is a bit clearer on the outside, and while nobody’s handing out starting jobs after three spring practices, Austin provided a bit of insight after Thursday morning’s session.
Sophomore Brenden Jaimes is working at left tackle and redshirt sophomore Matt Farniok is manning the right side.
“(Jaimes) is more comfortable on the left,†Austin said. “He’s already told me that because that’s the position he played coming out of high school. He’s comfortable. Matt’s working on the right side, so that’s where his comfort zone was before he got hurt last year. We’re working with those guys and making them better, trying to get them better every day.â€
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Jaimes became just the fifth true freshman in school history to start on the offensive line in 2017, replacing Farniok at right tackle after Farniok suffered a hand injury, and started the final eight games there. When Farniok returned late in the season, he slid inside to guard. Now, they’re starting spring as bookends.
Inside, Austin is rolling through a sizeable group of players at center that includes redshirt freshman Hunter Miller, freshman Will Farniok and seniors Tanner Farmer and Jerald Foster.
“We’ve been trying to get guys cross-trained in that spot,†Austin said. “Certainly not having (Decker and Conrad) has affected us and our production, but next man up.â€
Other interior players like Boe Wilson and John Raridon have been primarily guards, Austin confirmed, who are being trained to play either side.
Offensive coordinator Troy Walters already is pleased with the depth NU has up front, and only expects the situation to improve as players continue to get healthy.
"There are quite a few guys out there. We're still learning everybody, but I think we’ve got guys that can play at multiple positions, and we’ve got some depth," Walters said. "It’s not just five guys. We can play eight or nine, and Coach Austin’s going to get those guys ready because you’ve got to have depth in this league. I think we have some good depth where we can plug guys in if we lose a guy."
Martinez comfortable despite long layoff: Adrian Martinez played a few series in the Under Armour All-America game on Jan. 4 in Orlando. Before that, the freshman Nebraska quarterback hadn’t played in a competitive football game since November 2016.
The Fresno, California, native missed his entire senior season because of a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder and subsequent surgery.
Three practices into his first collegiate spring, though, Martinez is showing little in the way of rust, his position coach said Thursday.
“He’s doing really well,†NU quarterbacks coach Mario Verduzco said. “You’d never know. You really wouldn’t. You would think that he just played his senior year and away we go. He’s been fine in the meetings, he’s been fine at practice. You’d never know that he hadn’t played for a while.â€
Martinez was the first player Frost and Verduzco offered after Frost took the job here in December. He accounted for 4,024 total yards (2,562 passing) and 39 total touchdowns as a junior at Clovis West High, but then went more than 15 months before spring ball started here.
“I think for most quarterbacks at the position, it’s like riding a bike,†Verduzco said. “You’ve just got to get back on it and let’s go.â€
Irritated: Verduzco emphasized that the five quarterbacks in camp are getting equal repetitions.
He seemed generally pleased with Thursday’s work in full pads — but not totally pleased.
“We threw two picks today, which I was irritated about, and had two near-misses,†he said. “But up to this point with regards to the practices we’ve had, with as many reps as we’ve thrown in in terms of the pass game, we’ve been pretty good. But we can’t let those things happen.â€
He said the quarterbacks are getting used to the quicker practice tempo, and even the quicker tempo in meetings.
“They’re absorbing a lot of information, trying to piece it together,†he added. “But they’re doing well. Working hard at it. We have to make sure — and we’ve talked about this before — that what we did in the classroom, we have to take it to the field.â€
Good hands crew: Running backs coach Ryan Held was in the midst of discussing his group when he made sure to emphasize a quality that basically everyone in it shares.
“All my running backs have great hands,†he said. “That was one thing I didn’t know.â€
That could be helpful in an offense that heavily involves running backs in the passing game.
“We run really good routes — intermediate stuff,†Held said. “I mean, we’re not going to be getting deep balls all the time. But intermediate stuff, we’re pretty good.â€
He said seniors Mikale Wilbon and Devine Ozigbo have earned getting the "first cracks at it" with the top offense because of their veteran status. The coach also had unsolicited words of praise for walk-ons Wyatt Mazour of Albion and Austin Rose of Lincoln.
“I have a good group,†Held said. “I think they’ll all help on special teams. We just have to keep getting better — seeing the signal and knowing what to do. We have to coach the details of each play so it’s a little crisper.â€
Morgan stands out:Â On a lackluster day for the offense, senior wide receiver Stanley Morgan again stood out for his work in both picking up a new install Thursday and trying to pull his teammates through a sluggish workout.
" You can tell that it means something to him; that he wants to go out having a good season and helping Nebraska do something special," Walters said. "He was one guy that stood out."
— Parker Gabriel, Steven M. Sipple and Chris Basnett