Sam Adkins (American football)

Samuel Adam Adkins (born May 21, 1955) is a former professional American football player. He attended Cleveland High School in Reseda, California, and played college football at Wichita State University in Kansas.

Sam Adkins

No. 12
Position:	Quarterback
Personal information
Born:	(1955-05-21) May 21, 1955 Van Nuys, California
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	214 lb (97 kg)
Career information
High school:	Los Angeles (CA) Cleveland
College:	Wichita State
NFL Draft:	1977 / Round: 10 / Pick: 254
Career history
Seattle Seahawks (1977–1982)
Career NFL statistics
Pass attempts: 39 Pass completions: 17 Percentage: 43.6 TD-INT: 2-4 Passing yards: 232 QB Rating: 40.7 Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Adkins was a tenth round selection of the Seattle Seahawks in the 1977 NFL Draft and played for them from 1977–1982 as a backup quarterback to Jim Zorn,[1] and is the only member of the Seahawks to wear the number 12. After hand surgery caused him to miss the 1983 season,[1] he retired as a player.

In 1984, the number 12 was retired for the Seattle Seahawks fans (aka the "12s", but initially called the 12th man up until the early 2010s). The 12s is often considered to be the fans in the stands, as there are 11 players on the field at all times. While this rings true for crowds at home games in general, it became a prominent nickname that most football fans associate with the Seahawks.[2]

Since his retirement as a player, he has worked in broadcasting in the Seattle area, as the color commentator for the University of Washington football radio broadcasts and more extensively as a host and correspondent on the Seahawks post-game show.