Former NFL head coach and ESPN Analyst Herm Edwards was named the 24th head coach of Sun Devil Football, as announced by Arizona State University and Vice President of University Athletics Ray Anderson on December 3, 2017.

Edwards arrived in Tempe with a football legacy that has impacted thousands, whether as a player, coach, analyst, motivational speaker and author, or community advocate and philanthropist.

Edwards was tabbed by Anderson as someone who will be a “central leader with a collaborative staff around him that will elevate the performance of players and coaches on the field, in the classroom and in our community. Equally important, (Edwards) will be a dynamic and tireless recruiter.”

In his first two seasons, Edwards has led the Sun Devils to consecutive winning seasons and bowl appearances, a win over Florida State in the 2019 Sun Bowl, a 2-0 record vs. Arizona and five wins over ranked foes, including an upset of sixth-ranked Oregon in 2019 and consecutive road triumphs at No. 18 Michigan State and at No. 15 Cal, representing just the second time in history (also accomplished in 1986) that ASU won two straight road games against ranked opponents in back-to-back opportunities.

Earlier this year ASU became just the seventh program in NFL Draft history to have a wide receiver selected in the first round of consecutive drafts after Brandon Aiyuk was selected by the San Francisco 49ers with the 25th pick. In 2019, Aiyuk’s former teammate N’Keal Harry was taken off the board by New England with the 32nd pick.

In January 2020 ASU vice president for athletics Ray Anderson announced a contract extension for Edwards running through the 2024 season.

“Dr. Michael Crow (ASU President) and I are extremely encouraged with the overall direction of the football program under Coach Edwards and his staff, Anderson said. “They have built a foundation that is recruiting at unprecedented levels and we must ensure the continuation of that effort. This five-year commitment to Coach Edwards will demonstrate to prospective student-athletes and their parents the long-term commitment the University has toward his valued leadership.

“Additionally, Coach Edwards and staff have increased the win total, earned two bowl invitations, including one bowl victory, and have developed our young student-athletes at a very high level.  We’ve had several freshman All-Americans in the past two years and we played 32 true and redshirt freshmen in 2019.  Coach Edwards has assembled an impressive staff of coordinators, full-time assistants, consultants and analysts and has hired and developed young coaches as well, such as Sun Devil alum Derek Hagan.”

“It is an honor for myself and my family to serve as head football coach at Arizona State University,” Edwards said. “We have accomplished a lot in our first two years in Tempe and we look forward to continuing that momentum in all facets of our program.”

In 2019 Edwards, who was named the Dodd Trophy Coach of the Week a record three times during the season, guided ASU to a 8-5 record, including wins at No. 18 Michigan State, at No. 15 Cal and vs. No. 6 Oregon. Edwards’ steady leadership played a big role in the development of freshman quarterback Jayden Daniels who would go on to be named an ESPN Freshman All-American. After becoming the first true freshman quarterback in program history to start the first game of the season, Daniels went on to throw for 2,943 yards (11th most in school history) and 17 touchdowns with only two interceptions (the fewest in school history by a quarterback throwing 300 or more passed in a season).

Over the course of the season, Edwards oversaw the development of several standout players including Aiyuk (1,192 receiving yards, the fifth-most in ASU single season history), running back Eno Benjamin (ran for 1,083 yards and 10 TDs after breaking ASU’s single-season rushing record as a sophomore with 1,642 yards), punter Michael Turk (Ray Guy Award semifinalist), defensive back Kobe Williams (graded as the eigth-highest defender in the Pac-12, regardless of position), defensive back Jack Jones (tied for ninth nationally with 16 passes defended on the season and his 1.33 passes defended per game were 12th in the country), wide receiver Frank Darby (averaged 21.9 yards per catch and hauled in eight touchdowns) and center Cohl Cabral (earned All-Pac-12 second-team honors).

Joining Aiyuk as Sun Devils selected in the 2020 NFL draft was running Benjamin (Arizona Cardinals, seventh round). In addition, Cabrahl (Los Angeles Rams) and tight end Tommy Hudson (Tennessee Titans) signed free agent contracts.

Edwards and his coaching staff exceeded expectations during his first year in charge of the program, garnering national attention for several noteworthy achievements. ASU earned several significant victories under Edwards’ watch, including a pair of Top-25 wins in Sun Devil Stadium over No. 15 Michigan State and No. 16 Utah.

Despite being picked last by the media in the Pac-12 South in the preseason, Arizona State had a chance to win the Pac-12 South on the road against Oregon before finishing second in the division with a 5-4 conference record.

Edwards led the Sun Devils to a dramatic comeback victory in his first-ever Territorial Cup game against rival Arizona. Arizona State came back from a 19-point fourth-quarter deficit to earn the Territorial Cup point with a 41-40 win in Tucson. The comeback represented the largest in the history of the Territorial Cup series. Edwards’ first season culminated with an appearance against No. 21 Fresno State in the Las Vegas Bowl. Combined with ASU’s wins at USC and vs. UCLA, Edwards became the only first-year coach in program history to defeat UA, USC and UCLA and make a bowl game.

Under Edwards and his coaching staff, several players enjoyed breakout seasons. Arizona State was the only Power-5 program to have a 3,000-yard passer (Manny Wilkins), a 1,000-yard receiver (Harry), and a 1,500-yard rusher (Benjamin) in 2018.

On the defensive end, linebacker Merlin Robertson was named the 2018 Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year, becoming the first true freshman to lead the Sun Devils in tackles (77) since 2001. Fellow linebackers Darien Butler and Tyler Johnson came on strong as the season progressed as well as freshman standouts Aashari Crosswell (four interceptions) and Jermayne Lole (three sacks). Defensive tackle Renell Wren rated as the 23rd-best percentage among all defensive interior players in the FBS.

Harry (first round/New England Patriots) and Wren (fourth round/Cincinnati Bengals) were both selected in the 2019 NFL Draft. In addition, Wilkins (Green Bay Packers), offensive linemen Casey Tucker (Philadelphia Eagles) and Quinn Bailey (Denver Broncos), defensive back Jalen Harvey (Seattle Seahawks) and defensive lineman Doug Subtyl (Cleveland Browns) each accepted rookie free agent offers.

At ASU, Edwards has taken a proactive approach to developing coordinators and assistant coaches, drawing on his nearly three decades of NFL experience in a variety of capacities and wide range of leadership positions within both the sport of football and in other endeavors. That experience has also been utilized in an effort to develop players to prepare for the next stage of their careers after college.

Edwards spent eight years as an NFL head coach with the New York Jets (2001-05) and Kansas City Chiefs (2006-08). He led his teams to four playoff appearances, including 2004 when his Jets squad finished with a 10-6 regular season record and advanced to the AFC Divisional Playoffs. Edwards, who also guided the Chiefs to a Wild Card berth in 2006, is one of only four NFL coaches to lead two different teams to the playoffs in his first season as head coach with those teams.

Among the numerous players that Edwards coached in his career include Pro Football Hall of Famers Curtis Martin, Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, Kevin Mawae and Tony Gonzalez and numerous All-Pro players including as Larry Johnson, Ronde Barber, John Lynch, Jared Allen, Santana Moss, Tamba Hali, Derrick Johnson in addition to players like Donnie Abraham, Chad Pennington and Brandon Carr.

An undrafted free agent who went on to have a 10-year NFL career, Edwards never missed a game in his nine seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles from 1977 to 1985 and started all 16 games in seven of his nine seasons with the team. Over the course of his nine years in Philadelphia, Edwards totaled 38 interceptions – with seven during his sophomore NFL season – which is just one short of the franchise record. He earned second-team All-NFC honors in 1980 to help lead the Eagles to Super Bowl XV.

It is said the victory formation, which was implemented by the Eagles, came in part to a play made by Edwards late in the 1978 season. Trailing 17-12 to the New York Giants with seconds remaining, Giants’ quarterback Joe Pisarcik fumbled the handoff and Edwards picked it up for the scoop and score and the 19-17 victory. The play became known in Philadelphia as “The Miracle at the Meadowlands.”

Edwards retired from the NFL following the 1986 season, and as the first graduate of the league’s Minority Coaching Fellowship, he immediately went into coaching as a defensive assistant at San Jose State University from 1987 to 1989.

In 1990, Edwards transitioned back into the NFL as a scout and defensive backs coach with the Chiefs from 1990 to 1995 under legendary head coach Marty Schottenheimer. He then served under Tony Dungy with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1996-2000 before being hired as the head coach for the New York Jets in January 2001.

Over the course of five seasons Edwards led the Jets to three playoff berths, five postseason contests and a pair of 10-win seasons. His 35 victories with the team from 2001-04 is tied with Joe Walton (1983-86) for the most regular season wins by a coach in his first four years with the team.

He started his second tour with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2006 and became the first coach in franchise history to lead the team to the playoffs in his initial season.

Edwards joined ESPN in March 2009 as an NFL studio analyst. He appeared primarily on NFL Live and SportsCenter, while also contributing to ESPN Radio and the company’s annual Super Bowl coverage. He also worked local broadcasts of Eagles preseason games in 2009.

Among Edwards’ other responsibilities, he called weekly SEC prime time college football games alongside Clay Matvick on ESPNU in 2010, and he worked alongside Rece Davis and Chris Spielman in August 2009 to call the Dike-New Hartford at Aplington-Parkersburg (Iowa) high school football game on ESPN. The game marked the emotional return to the field for Aplington-Parkersburg, which lost its legendary football coach Ed Thomas in a tragic school shooting two months earlier. Edwards also participated in the 2011 SportsCenter series “Back to School,” where he returned to his hometown of Monterey, Calif., to coach his former high school team, the Monterey H.S. Toreadores.

Before officially joining ESPN, Edwards worked a brief stint in Bristol during the 2008 NFL offseason as a guest analyst.

Edwards’ media background also came into play as the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) presented Edwards with a newly-created Super 11 Coach of the Year award for the outstanding access its membership was granted during the 2018 season. In May 2019, the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication announced that Edwards will become a professor of practice at the school, serving as a guest lecturer in classes and conduct regular discussions on sports and the media at Cronkite.

Edwards played cornerback for the University of California in 1972 and 1974 before he ended his collegiate career at San Diego State in 1975.

A native of Seaside, Calif., Edwards graduated from Monterey High School, attended the University of California, Berkeley for two years, with a stint at Monterey Peninsula College, before graduating from San Diego State University with a degree in Criminal Justice. Edwards was inducted into the California Community College Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.

He was appointed a charter member of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, named a member of the Positive Coaching Alliance’s National Advisory Committee in 2003 and sits on the Santa Catalina School Board of Trustees.  Edwards also remains active in numerous charitable and philanthropic endeavors, including the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) along with his wife, Lia, who lives with Type I diabetes. He also created the Herman L. Edwards Family Youth Foundation in 1985 with the goal of making a direct impact on the lives of children on the Monterey Peninsula.

Edwards has been recognized by multiple organizations for his work in the community. He received the 2012 Walter Camp Foundation Man of the Year Award for his longtime contributions to the game of football; he was honored with Team ESPN’s Commentator of the Year Award in 2013; and in 2015 he received the prestigious Shell Legacy Award from the Shell Oil Company. Edwards was the recipient of the inaugural Voices Leadership Award in 2017. Voices is an organization that provides a wide range of support services for 9/11 families, responders and survivors.

Known for his dynamic motivational speaking, Edwards regularly addresses football players of all ages, as well as corporate groups. He spoke to incoming players at the NFL Players Association’s Rookie Premier in 2011, and coached teams at both the Under Armour All-America High School Football game (Head Coach 2011-16) and has also coached the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl college all-star game.

During his time at ESPN, Edwards remained connected to coaching as he served as a coach at the Under Armour All-American game, which features the top high school football recruits in the country. Edwards was 5-1 in the Under Armour All-America game, where he worked with such players as Jameis Winston, Amari Cooper, Deshaun Watson, Leonard Fournette and Dalvin Cook.

Edwards co-authored the book You Play to Win the Game – Leadership Lessons for Success On and Off the Field with ESPN’s Shelley Smith, and he was involved in longtime NFL referee Jim Tunney’s book, It’s the Will, Not the Skill – Principles and Philosophies of Success as Seen Through the Eyes, Mind and Heart of Herm Edwards.

A passionate golfer, Edwards appeared in Golf Channel’s original series “The Haney Project” with professional instructor Hank Haney in December 2011. Edwards has also played a number of high-profile celebrity tournaments in the past, including the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship in Lake Tahoe, the latter of which he takes part in every year.

Edwards and his wife Lia are the proud parents of three children:  Marcus, Gabrielle and Vivian.