Historic Arizona State Football Players: Jake Plummer

Kenny Dillingham has managed to take the Arizona State Sun Devils to a place that they had not been in nearly 30 years - as they had a chance to compete for a national championship in 2024.

The recent success of the Arizona native has been equally monumental and inspiring - but it likely would not have been possible without those who have paved the way before.

Among those figures is quarterback Jake Plummer - who starred in Tempe from 1993 to 1996, and was the leader of the 1996 Rose Bowl team.

Plummer originally desired to go to Stanford, but was convinced to come to play for Arizona State and started very early in his freshman season.

Plummer continued to serve as a serviceable starting quarterback across his sophomore and junior seasons - but truly broke out as a senior.

The Idaho native was instrumental in a historic 19-0 Arizona State victory over Nebraska on September 21, 1996 - that was the start of a special season in which he played a key role in leading the Sun Devils to a Pac-10 title and landed them a berth in the Rose Bowl.

A victory over Ohio State would have given Arizona State the inside track to win the national championship - as they would have been the only undefeated team in the country - but a last-minute Buckeyes touchdown handed the Sun Devils a 20-17 defeat.

Still, Plummer's impact was undeniable - a 2,575 yard, 23 touchdown season helped him win the Pac-10 offensive player of the year, a spot on the All-American first team roster, and a spot as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.

As for the current Arizona State quarterback, Plummer believes wholly in redshirt sophomore Sam Leavitt to take the Sun Devil program to new heights.

"It's exciting to see what's next. All the talk, everything people are saying, whatever. I have a feeling he's just going to work and ready to go have an even better year next year."

Read more about the argument behind Arizona State being set up to dominate the Big 12 recruiting sphere here, and a historic look at a hypothetical all-time Arizona State basketball team here.

Please let us know your thoughts on Plummer's past, present, and future contributions made to the Arizona State program when you like our Facebook page when you click right here.