Lincoln – Five members of the Nebraska football program received one the program's highest honors Saturday, as they were selected as team captains by their teammates. This 2020 captains include defensive back Dicaprio Bootle, offensive lineman Matt Farniok, quarterback Adrian Martinez, linebacker Collin Miller and wide receiver Kade Warner.
It marks the second straight season that Farniok and Martinez were named captains, becoming the 12th and 13th two-time captains in school history and the first since Jerald Foster (2017-18).
Bootle earned the honor after starting all 24 games over the last two seasons. A two-time All-Big Ten selection, he totaled 31 tackles, six pass breakups and a forced fumble in 2019, anchoring a secondary which held opponents to its lowest passing total since 2012. He is the first Husker defensive back named captain since Nate Gerry in 2015-16. Bootle is the Huskers' first captain from Florida since NFL star Lavonte David in 2011.
Farniok begins his second season as captain after starting 28 games during his Husker career. He started every game at right tackle for the past two years, keying an offense which ranked third in rushing offense and fifth in total offense last season. With Farniok's selection, it marks the eighth straight year that an offensive lineman has been a team captain.
Martinez, a two-year starter at quarterback, returns to pilot the Husker attack after completing nearly 60 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,956 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2019. Last season, he also rushed for 626 yards and seven scores in 10 contests. He already holds 11 school records during his Husker career, while his 258.2 yards of total offense per game ranked third in the Big Ten in 2019. It is the fourth time in the last six seasons that a quarterback has been one of the team captains.
Miller begins his second season as a starting linebacker, as he was third on the team with 67 tackles in 2019, including seven tackles for loss, and four pass breakups. He tallied a career-high 10 tackles at Minnesota last year, while he was named the program's linebacker of the year in 2019. A native of Fishers, Ind., Miller is the first Hoosier state product named a captain since Jared Tomich (1996) and is the fifth straight season a linebacker was named captain.
Warner has been a part-time starter at wide receiver over the last two seasons after walking on to the Husker program. As a sophomore, he played in seven games after returning from injury and hauled in eight passes for 101 yards. Warner becomes the first walk-on named captain since both Chris Weber and Luke McNitt in 2017, and the first Arizona product named captain since Alex Lewis in 2015.