Jake Plummer: NFL Pro Bowl Star, Pat Tillman's Bond, and the Magic of Umbo Mushrooms

Jake Plummer grew up in Idaho playing sports with his two older brothers. A three-sport athlete in high school, Plummer became an All-State quarterback who wanted to go to Stanford. Instead of being a walk-on for the Cardinal, he accepted a scholarship to Arizona State where he played for Bruce Snyder and became a starter his freshman year. A record-setting career culminated in 1996 when the Sun Devils were 11-0 before falling in the Rose Bowl denying them a chance at a share of the National Championship. That senior season, Plummer was the PAC 10 Offensive Player of the Year, a First-Team All-American and finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting behind Danny Wuerffel (Ep. 22 featuring Wuerffel: https://bit.ly/40wgbLf). Plummer was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2019. Ten years in the NFL followed college including the first six in Arizona where he helped lead the Cardinals to a postseason victory in 1998, their first in 51 years. He finished his career with the Denver and helped lead the Broncos to the 2005 AFC Championship game, falling to Pittsburgh. Since his retirement in 2007, Plummer has played handball professionally and helped co-found Umbo Functional Mushrooms for Athletes. In this episode, Plummer shares his journey and remembers his teammates including the late Pat Tillman who he played with at Arizona State and with the Arizona Cardinals. He also tells us about being labeled a "gunslinger" and why he likes his nickname, Jack "The Snake". He also explains the benefits of the natural ingredients Umbo uses and the positive affects the mushrooms have on the body and mind (Get 15% off your order at https://getumbo.com/ using the code ITFR15). In the Front Row with Mike Vaccaro is your front row seat to one-on-one conversations with sports figures. Each episode we go beyond the bio and hear about the stories that made headlines. Our guests are hall of famers, gold medalists, record holders, trailblazers and more. We cover all sports and all eras to bring you amazing guests with incredible accounts of the moments that made them the athlete and person they are today. Join us as our guests share memories of their best, and worst, moments of their journey in sports and in life.