Jake Plummer reflects on Pat Tillman
Nov 17, 2011, 2:21 AM | Updated: 3:37 am
Former Sun Devil and Cardinals quarterback Jake Plummer spent a lot of time playing football with the late Pat Tillman, but it is the memories and lessons off the field that make Plummer think back to his close friend.
Plummer shared his thoughts on Tillman with Arizona Sports 620’s Doug and Wolf.
“I think about him and I think of, obviously, all the great times we had. But I think now, ‘What would he be doing? What would Pat be up to?’ and you just wonder.”
Plummer continued.
“It can almost inspire you to think about trying something new, trying something different and I think about Pat a lot, along with a lot of people.”
Plummer and Tillman were teammates at ASU from 1994-97 and then were reunited as Cardinals from 1998-2001.
“More people today think of him as a war hero but I just think of him as a great friend and a guy that can teach you, number one, something real simple: how to just be a better friend, and Pat had a lot of great qualities and he is worth remembering.”
Jake Plummer retired from the NFL in 2006, two years after Tillman’s death in Afghanistan while he was deployed as an Army Ranger.
“People have said that they think Pat’s death influenced my decision,” Plummer said. “I was ready to retire the year before, if we [Denver Broncos] had won the Super Bowl I was ready to drift off and do what I did after my tenth season.”
Plummer left Doug and Wolf with some advice he said was “in Pat Tillman form.”
“You know you might find a Pat Tillman bagging your groceries some day if you just take the time to pry into their brain, ask them a question or two. That was Pat, man. He just never let anything sit idly by.”
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