Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez was as impressive as any freshman in the country this season. Things didn’t go exactly the way the Huskers had planned, but the success Martinez enjoyed in his first year is hard to ignore.

Martinez was named a Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America on Monday, one of four B1G newcomers to receive the honor. It was hard to deny him a spot on the list considering the numbers he posted in 2018.

In 11 games this year, Martinez threw for 2,617 yards and added 629 yards on the ground as a true freshman in Scott Frost’s offense. He accounted for 25 total touchdowns. That’s an average of 237.9 passing yards and 57.2 rushing yards per game.

With those averages, the freshman gunslinger joined elite company.

According to Nebraska football, Martinez became just the sixth freshman quarterback to average of 200 passing yards and 50 rushing yards per game. A few others to accomplish that were Marcus Mariota (Oregon), J.T. Barrett (Ohio State) and Johnny Manziel (Texas A&M).

Mariota and Manziel went on to win the Heisman Trophy and Barrett set a ton of B1G and program records when he left Columbus. So yeah, that’s a pretty special accomplishment.

Nebraska finished the season 4-8 but really got on track in the second half of the season. After an 0-6 start, the Huskers won four of their final six games with the only losses coming to Ohio State and Iowa by a combined eight points.

Martinez was a huge reason why the Huskers finished the year so strong.

If Martinez’s freshman season is any indication, the future is extremely bright in Lincoln. And with a few playmakers joining him next season, Nebraska’s offense could be even more electrifying in 2019.

It’s too early to say that Martinez is on a Heisman Trophy path, but he’s certainly off to a great start.