When Taylor Martinez stepped on the field Saturday evening, the crowd's ovation gave him chills.
Three plays later, Martinez returned the favor with a 46-yard sprint that yielded six points.
And after three touchdowns, 127 yards rushing and 136 more passing, it was easy to forget that the star of Nebraska's 49-10 walloping of Western Kentucky wasn't publicly named the starter until 30 minutes before kickoff.
Martinez's trip to the top of the Cornhusker depth chart was far from conventional. A year ago, his name was obscure to even dedicated Cornhusker fans. Martinez was the "other" quarterback in a recruiting class whose gem was Cody Green, a prized passer out of Texas who started two games as a true freshman while Martinez stood on the sidelines.
A native of Corona, Calif., Martinez came to Nebraska convinced that he was a college quarterback. Others weren't so sure, with many recruiting pundits saying he was better suited for the defensive backfield. The Husker coaching staff also seemed on the fence, playing Martinez on both sides of the ball for the Husker scout team in 2009.
NU offensive coordinator Shawn Watson admits he's been amazed by his young quarterback's progression.
"Coming in as a freshman, it's hard to ever make an impact," Watson said. "It's real hard, because you're playing such a big game of catch-up. He's really had a really good spring, a good summer and a great fall. He just keeps working.
"He's very humble and hard-working. He's everything you'd want in a quarterback."
Humble perhaps, but not lacking for confidence. Martinez said the prospect of becoming a household name didn't worry him. Even as message board junkies questioned his passing ability and fans wondered how a 19-year-old could lead a top-10 team, Martinez never doubted where he belonged on the field.
"I've always been able to throw the ball really well," he said, "just no one has really been able to see it."
On at least the second point, he's right. Aside from a promising but unpolished cameo in April's spring game, Martinez was an enigma to Husker fans.
Players and coaches spent much of fall camp touting his quiet confidence, grasp of the offense and — of course — his trademark speed. Still, the fans hadn't seen the soft-spoken teenager nicknamed "T-Magic" in action.
But after Green and Zac Lee struggled under center last year and the Huskers finished 11th in the Big 12 Conference in pass offense, many found it easy to pull for the underdog in the three-man race for the starting job.
And when NU coach Bo Pelini made Martinez the school's first-ever freshman to start a season opener, T-Magic didn't disappoint.
"I thought Taylor did a nice job running the ball," Pelini said. "He made some explosive plays. I thought he managed the football team well."
That explosion started on Nebraska's opening drive, when Martinez electrified the crowd of 85,555 by slicing through the Hilltopper defense and trotting into the end zone. It was no different, Martinez said, than his first game at Centennial High two years earlier.
"At my last high school, the first time I carried the ball, too, I scored a touchdown," he said.
"And right when I came here, I was hoping I was going to do the same thing — score a touchdown for Nebraska. So that's what happened. I just ran as fast as I can."
Martinez's matter-of-fact approach to wowing an entire state amused senior wide receiver Brandon Kinnie, who said he could hardly get a reaction out of his young teammate.
"There's no facial expression, no nothing after he scores," Kinnie said. "He's just like, ‘Whatever.' And we're like, ‘Well, are you gonna say something? Talk, jump, say something?' He's a good guy though, a cool guy."
Tackle Jeremiah Sirles, a fellow redshirt freshman, said Martinez isn't any louder off the field.
"I force him to talk to me," Sirles said. "I force him to sit with me at lunch and talk. But that's all right, that's the way he is, and that's the way he's going to be. He's my quarterback."
Kinnie finds Martinez's stoic personality peculiar.
"He's my boy, but I call him weird all the time," he said.
Not that he's complaining. After the first touchdown, Kinnie asked Martinez, "Why are you so fast?"
"It seems like he gets faster and faster every day," Kinnie said. "It's so easy to him. It's just like it's nothing."
At least that's how it seemed Saturday. Martinez reeled off two more touchdown runs and finished with an average of more than 18 yards per rush. That total might have been higher had he not exited the game after the third quarter with Nebraska up by 32.
His two replacements, who coaches say were part of a very tight race for the starting job, also were impressive. Green and Lee both led scoring drives, and Pelini said they'll likely continue to see playing time.
But three quarters and three touchdowns into his college career, it's the speedy freshman who has captured the imaginations of Husker fans.
As a grinning Watson put it, "That kid can make some plays."
mitchsmith@
dailynebraskan.com
is a member of the 
Be the first to comment on this article!