Adrian Martinez was one of the most exciting recruits in recent memory for Nebraska; that’s no secret.

Neither is the fact that the Cornhuskers can’t keep defenders off of their true freshman quarterback.

Michigan hounded Martinez constantly last weekend in Nebraska’s 56-10 loss in its Big Ten opener.

And the whole Cornhuskers team, not just Martinez, has to try to shake off that rout against Purdue (Saturday, 3:30 ET, Big Ten Network) when Big Red returns to Memorial Stadium.

Nebraska’s offensive line was outplayed thoroughly against the Wolverines. Officially, Michigan racked up four sacks for 39 yards against Nebraska and added 14 tackles for loss. Linebacker Devin Bush had 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack and defensive end Rashan Gary had 2 TFLs and a sack.

Unofficially, the Wolverines pretty much lived in the Cornhuskers backfield all day, even more than the stats indicated.

Coach Scott Frost was smart to lift Martinez early at Michigan Stadium to prevent his prized quarterback from getting hurt again.

That game was a big step back compared to the opener against Colorado, when the Buffaloes sacked Martinez just twice. But that was also the game when Martinez was injured on a hit late in the fourth quarter, and the injury forced him to sit out the following week’s loss to Troy.

Then came Michigan with its relentless pressure, sending Martinez scrambling all day. He never had a chance to change the game running in a positive way (he had seven carries for minus-12 yards) and wound up 7-of-15 passing for just 22 yards. He took all four sacks that Nebraska gave up.

There is no question that Nebraska’s opposition this week is nowhere near as strong. Michigan is first in the Big Ten in defense. Purdue is 12th. The Wolverines are also first in pass defense, and the Boilermakers are also 12th in the same category.

If Nebraska is to bounce back and get Martinez going, exploiting Purdue’s secondary might be the way to go, if Frost and his staff do it right.

The elusive Martinez needs to keep his confidence and keep moving — lots of rollouts and things of that sort. A lot of quick throws on flat routes, screens and slants would help keep him clean and perhaps take pressure off of the beleaguered Cornhuskers offensive line.

But, just Nebraska’s luck, Purdue (1-3) started to find a bit of form on defense last weekend against then-No. 23 Boston College. The Boilermakers set season lows in points (13), passing yards (144), total yards (229) and first downs (15) allowed in a 30-13 victory.

Still, Purdue just does not have the same level of talent on defense as Michigan — after all, this is a team which lost to Eastern Michigan.

If the Cornhuskers are going to break their seven-game losing streak, they need Martinez to show why he was such a prized recruit and why he is the biggest reason to have hope in this program.

But Nebraska also needs to give him a whole lot more help than he has received so far.