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Jake Plummer 'embarrassed to be a Sun Devil' after reaction toward new football coach Herm Edwards

Posted at 1:28 PM, Dec 06, 2017
and last updated 2017-12-06 17:20:10-05

The announcement of Herm Edwards as the Arizona State Sun Devils' new football coach has been met with mixed reactions from ASU fans. 

Some fans are concerned about Edwards' lack of experience as a college football coach, along with him being away from coaching for nearly a decade. Others support the outside-the-box thinking of athletic director Ray Anderson, who was Edwards' agent during his time as an NFL head coach.

On Wednesday, former Sun Devil quarterback and Heisman Trophy finalist Jake Plummer threw his support behind Edwards, and said he's "embarrassed" by the negative response to the hiring by some ASU alumni.

"I’m embarrassed to be a #SunDevil today, not bcuz of the Herm Edwards hire (I hope he does well and believe he will) but bcuz of the amount of negative naysayers out there supposedly calling themselves ASU fans," Plummer said via Twitter, adding he hopes those who doubt the Edwards hire "eat crow."

Plummer, who led ASU to the Rose Bowl in his senior season in 1996, added he's "excited" to see Edwards "work and motivate these young men to do their best every day."

Like the Edwards hire itself, Plummer's comments were met with mixed reactions by ASU fans and alumni.

An ABC15 Twitter poll conducted Monday and Tuesday asked whether ASU fans are more or less optimistic about the future of the Sun Devil football program following Edwards' introductory press conference Monday morning. After nearly 600 votes, 43 percent said they are less optimistic, while 30 percent are more optimistic and 27 percent said "no change."

But Plummer isn't the only former ASU quarterback to back the Edwards hiring. Rudy Carpenter, who played for the Sun Devils from 2005-08, said Edwards will bring "positivity" and "high energy" to ASU's football program.

"I do think he is a different type of shot in the arm for the program that, in my opinion, will really be good. It's just different when a guy like Herm Edwards walks into a home in Los Angeles, in Sacramento and in the Bay area," Carpenter said in an ASU press release.