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The Arizona State Sun Devils will make a change at the head coaching position as the school has fired Herm Edwards, according to Chris Karpman of 247 Sports. With Arizona State losing to Eastern Michigan in Week 3, the writing was on the wall for Edwards.
BREAKING: Herm Edwards is out as ASU's head football coach per two people familiar with the decision.
— Chris Karpman (@ChrisKarpman) September 18, 2022
ASU staff member were told within the last hour that Edwards would no longer be the team's coach.
Interim head coaching plans are not clear as yet.
The Sun Devils hired Edwards in 2017 due to his personal connection to athletic director Ray Anderson. The idea was Edwards could help run the program similar to a NFL team. The foundation appeared to be solid with bowl game appearances in the first two seasons but Edwards couldn’t get past that 8-win mark.
The turning point for Edward’s tenure was the program being placed under NCAA investigation for hosting recruits during the COVID-19 dead period. Several Sun Devil assistant coaches were either “resigned” or were fired in the offseason, moves that were interpreted in the coaching world as Edwards throwing everyone else under the bus to save his own job.
He also had many prominent players transfer out of the program and there was trouble brewing with the atmosphere Edwards had created. In the new era of NIL deals and players looking to build a platform, it’s hard to imagine Edwards’ voice resonated well on the recruiting front.