Huskers lack explosion in 20-3 win over Jayhawks

Taylor Martinez needed to shake off quite a bit of rust on Saturday.

The explosive ability the Nebraska quarterback had displayed for most of the season was somewhat absent during the Cornhuskers' 20-3 victory against Kansas. But that was to be expected after Martinez sustained an ankle injury two weeks ago.

"We tried to protect him out there a little bit," Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said. "That was kind of the plan going in, let him ease back into it. I thought he did some really good things. I think there are a couple of throws he'd like to have back."

The Huskers started slow, going three and out on their first two possessions. Martinez's first rushing attempt didn't come until early in the second quarter, and the freshman only ran three times for 10 yards in the first half.

"I'm a long way from where I was," Martinez said. "I've been in treatment for a long time. It's getting a lot better. It's almost 100 percent right now."

Nebraska took a 14-0 lead to halftime behind rushing touchdowns from running backs Rex Burkhead and Roy Helu Jr., and Martinez made up for his slow start in the ground game by keeping drives alive with his arm. Nebraska went 5-for-9 on third-down conversions in the first half and four of them came from Martinez throwing the ball, including a 26-yard pass to Niles Paul on third and 25.

"(NU receivers coach Ted) Gilmore always tells us it's money down," NU receiver Brandon Kinnie said. "We know we're going to be called upon on third down, so we just have to be an athlete and make a play."

Martinez passed for 106 yards in the first half. Kinnie said Martinez wasn't any different in the huddle even without his full running ability.

"He's a very poised guy," Kinnie said. "You're going to get the same reaction every time from him: He doesn't panic, he doesn't get overly too happy."

Martinez was noticeably more comfortable running the ball in the second half. He ran the ball eight times for 61 yards. Martinez's most impressive run was in the third quarter when he was able to get outside for a 17-yard gain.

"I still think he's explosive," Kinnie said. "He still made some explosive plays for us to keep the chains moving. He isn't all the way back yet, but you saw him still make some plays out there."

But Nebraska turned the ball over twice in the second half and only put six points on the board.

"You want to get more explosive plays," Pelini said. "Explosive plays equate to points more often than not. We didn't have much explosion, and we weren't efficient enough. We took ourselves out of the drives. It was obvious. It comes down to one thing: execution."

Nebraska's first drive of the second half ended on a Martinez interception, his first since September. After NU cornerback Alfonzo Dennard gave the offense the ball back with his own interception, Martinez fumbled on the next play.

The starters on the Nebraska offense remained on the field until the end of the game, and Pelini said this was because he wasn't satisfied with the offense's execution throughout the game.

"It's about getting your football team better," he said, "and at that point, I wasn't very happy about how we played offensively, so we're going to keep playing and get the reps we need to get."

Martinez didn't wow the crowd with a 50-yard touchdown run on Saturday, but having him under center might have been the bigger gain for Nebraska.

"It was very important for me to get back out there, just to know that it's my team and no one else's team," Martinez said, "and for me to start establishing a rhythm once we go into Texas A&M and Colorado."

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