It’s official. The Scott Frost era is off and running.

The first on-field sampling of the Frost era was seen by many, as expected. We didn’t learn the answer to the ultimate question surrounding the Frost era. As in, will the former Nebraska national championship quarterback lead his alma mater back to glory?

But we did learn these things from Nebraska’s first spring game of the Frost era:

1. Scott Frost’s offense is already progressing well

I wasn’t convinced that it would actually feel like a football game. Usually spring games feel more like 7-on-7. I didn’t get that feeling because of the tempo that the Huskers played with. It was night and day compared to last year.

The offensive line play is going to improve as a result of that tempo, and as a result, “run the ball guy” is going to like what he sees from Scott Frost in this offense. You could see everyone just look like they were in more of a rhythm because of the pace being played.

Sure, we saw some illegal formations and not all of the zone-reads were perfect. But for the most part, that was a good sign to see the offense look that developed after only a few months of Frost.

2. Adrian Martinez looks like the real deal

He stole the show, in my opinion. We knew that Martinez was mature beyond his years and that Frost targeted him for a reason. I didn’t expect to see him look THAT good in his first showcase at Nebraska, especially playing one-hand touch.

If there were nerves, Martinez didn’t show them. If there was an adjustment to learning Frost’s language, we didn’t really see it.

Instead, we saw an early enrollee walk into a sold-out stadium and own it. He’s definitely still a run-first guy. With his athleticism, I don’t know if that’s changing anytime soon or if that even needs to change. I liked seeing the touchdown pass that he threw to Kurt Rafdal where he looked off the safety and made a solid throw to his second read (via Nebraska on BTN).

It was interesting that Martinez came in after walk-on Andrew Bunch. Who knows if that meant anything. What did mean something was the lasting impression that Martinez’s performance will have for the next few months.

3. I have even less of an idea who wins this QB job

Having said all of that stuff about Martinez, I’m not sure that he’ll be Nebraska’s opening day starter. Why? Well, a lot more will be taken into account. Let’s keep in mind that while Martinez was the early enrollee and Tristan Gebbia was the second-year player, it was the latter who was and still is new to the system.

Gebbia is going to get a full offseason to learn Frost’s offense and to master it. In Gebbia’s defense, I thought he looked solid running it. Clearly, his arm is better than Martinez’s right now. He throws a better ball and he might be better-suited to make those quick-hitter throws to the outside. Gebbia can move pretty well, too.

And let’s not forget that while Andrew Bunch is the walk-on, Frost isn’t going to rule anyone out yet. Bunch made some nice throws himself, too.

Frost has maintained that this battle is going to go deep into the fall. He won’t not start someone just because he’s a true freshman (Martinez), and nor will he refuse to sign a guy who he didn’t recruit (Gebbia). Clearly, though, Frost is going to have a couple of solid options to turn to.

4. The defense adjusted well

Nebraska fans’ biggest complaint of the Frost era is going to be the defense. I feel confident about that. The tempo that the Huskers want to play on offense isn’t ideal for a defense staying fresh. With Frost manning the offense, that’s probably always going to be the case.

Having said that, I thought the defense made some nice adjustments to that tempo. We saw Freedom Akinmoladun and Lamar Jackson both step up and make big plays to slow the offense down. I thought it was an interesting stat to see the Huskers actually had 11 tackles for loss in the first half. For a defense that was supposed to be gassed and on its heels, that was a good sign.

With the exception of some sloppy tackling down the stretch, the Huskers were about where I expected them to be defensively.

5. This was a different kind of Nebraska hype

Ok, so I’ve been to Nebraska spring games and seen a whole lot of people show up to watch Bo Pelini and Mike Riley. This was a different type of hype. Obviously that isn’t news to anyone, but it was noteworthy.

Nebraska had 86,818 people show up for a practice when it was 48 and overcast. That was the eighth largest crowd ever for a spring game and the largest crowd for a school not named Alabama, Georgia or Ohio State.

I mean, my goodness.

All the players who were interviewed on the sidelines were gushing about the excitement of the Frost era. It just felt different with Frost compared to anything we ever saw from Riley or Pelini. Maybe because Frost’s former teammates — the ones who won national titles — were the ones talking about the new feeling in Lincoln.

Will there ultimately be a new feeling in Lincoln in the long-term? We’re years and years away from finding that out.

But for one April afternoon, the Frost hype couldn’t have felt more real.