Thanks, Seahawks
by Grady Clapp on Jan 9, 2010 10:06 AM PST
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PrintBy now, you've probably heard the news that the Seattle Seahawks are targeting Pete Carroll for their newly-formed head coaching vacancy. Now we're hearing a deal is just about done, and the news is coming from sources other than Chris Mortensen (like Adam Schefter, a guy I can't seem to figure out if I love or hate), so for all intents and purposes, this looks like it's going down.
We're not going to talk about how this affects the Hawks - we have Field Gulls for that, and, quite frankly, they know a lot more about this stuff than I do. Nuss also knows more about this, and judging by his Twitter feed I'm going to go out on a limb and say he's not enamored. From the Seahawk standpoint, anyway. I'm conflicted, as we've never seen Carroll in the GM/Coach role before and can't be sure if it's going to help or hurt. At least there's this: how cool is it to see Seattle poach a figurehead from a "big market", when it's usually the other way around?
Regardless of what you think about the coaching change in Seattle, this move sends shock waves through the Pac-10. The happiest part is this: USC is no longer USC. They have, at least for a moment, lost their invincibility. Now, they already lost some of it when Oregon took over the Pac-10 this season, but within minutes of the national championship ending you had ESPN analysts already putting the Trojans in their preseason top fives (many putting them ahead of a Boise State team that returns everyone - which is just inept in my opinion). Now, USC has to fight on with a new head coach - a question mark - for a team that rarely had any question marks for the better part of the last decade. Also, there's the issue of potential NCAA violations harming the football program in a way similar to their basketball program. Add that to Rick Neuheisal's improved recruiting efforts at cross-town rival UCLA, and the football dynasty in Los Angeles may officially be over after all. Recruits may be bolting for Alabama, or Texas, or any of the other major programs that have stability.
Then there's the issue of where USC gets their next coach from. This is where it gets good for Coug fans. Many reports center around Oregon State's Mike Riley. Mike Riley shouldn't take this job. He's happy at Oregon State, regrets leaving the first time and has built a solid, perennial contender. OSU can (and probably will) get to the Rose Bowl again in the next several years. However, USC has the almighty dollar, and for the amount they pay they may even be able to get Tony Bennett to leave Virginia to coach football (if they wanted). A more realistic, and exciting possibility, at least in my head, is USC poaching Steve Sarkisian from Washington. This would be music to a Cougar's ears, setting the Husky program back after a year where it returned to respectability (if not a Bowl game). The Huskies, if put in this position, would almost certainly pick up - yep, you guessed it - Jim Mora, the man who once semi-jokingly called it his dream job. However Mora has zero college coaching experience since serving as a graduate assistant at the UW in 1984. That makes him slightly less of a sure thing for the Huskies than Sarkisian. Of course, Mora could be the savior of the Husky program and be even better than Sark. But here's hoping he isn't.
While I have no definitive idea of what this move does to the Seahawks, I do know two things: 1) it will destabilize USC and 2) it will likely destabilize another Pac-10 program. That alone is reason for Coug fans to send a thank you card to Paul Allen.
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It makes me wonder if any of USC's or OSU's recruits could find their way to WSU.
At least they won’t find their way to UW as they’re already over the limit.
Unfortunately, they're not over, still
They’ve got room in that class, still. With a little creative enrolling, they’ll probably be picking up 30 guys in this “class”, some of which count towards last year.
Sark will announce soon.....
That he’s going to sign 35 kids instead of the usual 30. If I was a commit at that school I’d be very nervous about right now.
35 is too high
30 is what he’s going to take. 35 would be impossible to fit in under the 25 a class rule. He’s going to take probably 4 early enrolls and a grayshirt to put him at 30 in this class.
I think it's more likely
that USC loses current commits and recruits to UW, Cal, Stanford, ND, tOSU, FL, Alabama, et al, and comes and poaches OUR commits to fill out their class.
There are tons of big names out there who’d kill to coach at USC, coming sanctions or not. The Trojans have the type of tradition and money that can compete with NFL dollars. I don’t think Sark is even in the discussion. If he’s able to do something with this and future batches of Huskies, then 3-4 years from now, I could see him being a consideration, but not this year. I think Reilly’s pretty happy with where he’s at, though you never know. Harbaugh? Petersen (Boise State)? Kiffen? Gary Patterson (TCU)? …does Obama have a brother-in-law who coaches football?
by TiltingRight on Jan 10, 2010 12:49 AM PST up reply actions
As a Seahawks season ticket holder, I couldn't be more pissed
The guy wasn’t exactly an abject failure in his previous stints, but neither was Jim Mora. What happened to the Paul Allen who went out and paid for the best head coach available, Mike Holmgren? Why are we not making a play for Bill Cowher? Why did we not make a play for Mike Shanahan? Those guys aren’t retreads — they’re Super Bowl winners.
And I guess that’s what’s got me so upset. It appears they didn’t even do their due diligence. No interviews with other candidates — they just identified a supremely successful college coach and threw a crapload of money at him. Ask the Redskins how well that worked out.
I’ll bet the Steelers are pretty happy they interviewed a lot of candidates when Cowher retired. My guess is they probably didn’t identify Mike Tomlin first, but feel pretty certain now that they hired the right guy.
I just am stunned that the Seahawks have gone from model organization to laughingstock in three years. It’s absurd how far we’ve fallen, not just as a team, but as an organization. We have no GM, no head coach, no football direction whatsoever right now.
But as I said on Twitter, the good news is that the Mariners have showed just how quick you can turn it around with one shrewd hire. I look forward to three years from now when Carroll is fired and they start over.
Oh, and sorry Coug fans
I’d rather the Seahawks get it right and Carroll stay at USC. Maybe he can become someone else’s problem. But even if he doesn’t and stays at USC, the impending NCAA doom will likely guarantee they won’t be nearly as strong as they’ve been.
I agree completely
Hate the thought of Carroll as the Hawks coach, even if it’s good for the Cougs. When I first heard Mora got fired, my first thought was “great, we’re making a run at Cowher.” I really thought that when Cowher indicated he wasn’t coming back this year, it was at least partially because he was intrigued by possible openings next year, including in Seattle.
Shanahan, I’m not as high on. I think he’s a good game coach, but would want personel control and I’m not positive that he isn’t a little too convinced of his own genius in that regard.
I wouldn't be as unhappy with the hire
But I disagree with the process they took to get there completely. If they had done their due diligence and interviewed a variety of candidates and still settled on Pete, then I’m fine with that. Instead, it sounds like there was some mutual flirting, an expression of interest, and then Mora was fired. I don’t like when a team just falls in love with one guy and puts blinders on as it can lead to a really bad mistake.
Who knows how Carroll would pan out, but I don’t like how it came to be in the first place.
Yeah, that's really the frustration
If they had made a decision to go in a new direction, talked to everyon that might be interested, and realized that the best possible coach/best coach they can hire is Carroll, then I can live with that. But the quick infatuations in sports aren’t that different then quick infatuations in life, there is immediate passion but when that fades often there isn’t much else.
I wanted to see a hire that matched the intensity of the fans.....
Mike Holmgren and Jon Gruden. Perfect fit for Seattle. It was there for the taking.
Nuss, what have we done that God will only let us have one successful Pro team at a time?
Seahawks up, Mariners and Sonics down. Mariners up, Seahawks down and Sonics leave town. It seems like it has always been this way.
1997
Mariners, Seahawks and Sonics all in the playoffs.
Mariners ousted by Orioles in ALDS, Sonics lose in the second round to Lakers, Seahawks destroyed at home by Dolphins in wild card round.
Yup, being a Seattle sports fan isn’t fun most of the time.
That Hawks season was 99 wasn't it?
CougCenter WSU's second main blog
by Craig Powers on Jan 9, 2010 1:17 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
I feel like being a Seattle sports fans makes me a masochist
So much pain over the years. There’s been great moments but never the big payoff. I’m not sure what I’d do if a team ever wins a championship in my lifetime
To paraphrase don james
Being a Seattle sports fan prepares us for life. We learn not to expect too much.
Sometimes I feel bad about being a Seattle sports fan
And then I remember there are sports fans in Cleveland.
Of my favorite teams, only one has won a title in my lifetime. And that team is the Pittsburgh Penguins, who are shockingly not a Seattle team. Oh well, I guess at least the Sounders won an Open Cup.
by Grady Clapp on Jan 9, 2010 5:09 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
This made me laugh SO hard.
A great friend of mine at tOSU was from Sandusky, half way between Cleveland and Toledo along the lake. He grew up in a Cleveland household (Browns, Indians and Cavs all the way), and around the time he was 8 he asked his dad why all their favorite teams sucked. He said his dad got pretty flustered and then snapishly said something about how it teaches you about loyalty or some such thing. My buddy says, “That’s dumb. I’m going to root for someone else,” and has rooted against Cleveland ever since.
by TiltingRight on Jan 10, 2010 12:22 AM PST up reply actions
I don't see Sark leaving UW
He’s already a hero in Seattle, and the money is good. USC can probably give him a raise, but he has to weigh that against a few key things. He’ll be compared to the success of Carroll, especially since he worked under Carroll, and that will be difficult. Really difficult if your going to start your tenure with sanctions from the NCAA.
I think that is the key. Maybe, all things being equal, Riley or Sark would head to USC if there are no coming sanctions. But you have to think that if your even contemplating the job, you make some calls and figure out exactly what it will look like for next year and beyond. And if your going to get stuck behind the 8 ball (bowl sanctions for a year or more, schollies lost, anything like that) you would have to really wonder if it’s worth it.
If I'm a coach, I like it because of the sanctions
Buys you some time to do your thing. Ask Thad Matta how that worked out at Ohio State.
Yeah, but it's USC
They have a taste of massive success. How much time post sanctions will they give the new coach?
And for Sark, he has time. This year got Husky fans so excited that even if they go back a little bit next year, which I don’t really see happening, he won’t feel any pressure until year 4 or 5. Does he get a longer grace period at USC? I just don’t know.
But I often underestimate the egos and attitudes of coaches. So I should give up trying to predict if coaches will stay or go.
I like these moves
I am a lifelong Seahawks fan like many people here are and I like this move. I understand why many hate it, and at first I hated it also. But after thinking about it and then sleeping on it, I actually like the move. I think Carroll has proved he is a good coach and I really think he has a chip on his shoulder and is out to prove to everyone he can win in the NFL. I think he really hates hearing he can only win in college because his attitude and style of coaching wont fit in the NFL. Carroll ran a very pro style offense at USC so he is not bringing some stupid offense with him like Spurrier did at Washington. Also, Carroll is a more defensive minded coach and except last year he has always had among the best in defenses college and always had NFL players at just about every position on his defenses. So I think he really just needs to hire a better offensive coordinator than Greg Knapp, which I don’t think will be a problem seeing how many good OC USC has had over the years now coaching elsewhere.
Also, I think Paul Allen and the Seahawks deserve the benefit of the doubt. Ever since he has bought this team he has shown he will do almost anything to keep them a winner. He built a new stadium, he hired Holmgren, he spent money to get good players to get this team to the Super Bowl. He fired Mora after one season when it was clear he could not coach. Most of the bad decisions this team made were made by Ruskell, which really was Allen’s one bad move since buying this team. Are we all forgetting what this team was like before we had a local owner with deep pockets that would do everything possible to keep them winning? Are we forgetting owners who wanted to move this team to LA? Are we forgetting owners that were happy with 2-14 season and coaches like Tom Flores? No, and now we have a owner that fires the horrible coach before he ruins his franchise even more. Sorry, I am going to go with Paul Allen on this one and give him the benefit of the doubt, I think him hiring Carroll is a great move and he is getting someone who is not only a good coach but is determined to prove everyone he can win consistently in the NFL and an owner who will give him whatever it takes to let him win in the NFL.
Also the added bonus would be Sark leaving UW. If he is offered the job I think he would jump at the chance in a second. He might have a good thing going at UW, but he could be great at USC and has clearly proven he can recruit and coach (man it pains me to say that) and it is easier to attract top players to sunny Southern California than it is to rainy Western Washington.
There's almost 0 chance Sark is offered the job
The powers that be didn’t like him, to the point of celebrating when he went to UW. I just don’t see them bringing him in when they will be targeting bigger names that are more established.
The move itself may turn out to be good, but I’m always skeptical when a team makes a quick hire like this.
Riley is likely to be the guy ...
… because he is intimate with the Pac 10, with So Cal recruiting and he used to coach at USC.
Sark has no shot at even being considered. He was unpopular among many alum for his playcalling style and he was cheered when he left. Alum are now seeing that he was a pretty effective recruiter and QB mentor, but I think they’d rather have someone more proven.
Damn, my eyeball tastes good.
as for Carroll to the Hawks
Truth is that we have no idea how well Pete will do as coach for Seattle. I like the fact that he is an accomplished DC and that he’ll be inheriting a few players that already know him. I’m pretty sure that he was a coach for Chuck Knox, which is interesting. He also coached for the Seahawks in his last NFL job before going to USC. I have no idea what we are going to get, but this is not a “college guy” trying the NFL. Pete is a long-time NFL’er who is well connected and respected among agents, players and front-office guys alike. If he can tap into an exciting young OC and get personally involved in the D, it might work out for us.
Damn, my eyeball tastes good.
Whether or not you think Carrol will bring success to the Hawks,
we can all agree he will bring more attention/notoriety. That is not to say that is exclusively positive, but I like it. Based on how media friendly he was at USC, it would not shock me to see Seattle on Hark Knocks, which would be awesome.
by spencer peaty on Jan 10, 2010 10:44 AM PST up reply actions
I agree.
Particularly if he is either picking his own players or working closely with someone he trusts to pick his own players. You can find guys who will enjoy or at least put up with the “rah-rah” stuff, particularly since he’s shown he can win.
by TiltingRight on Jan 10, 2010 2:32 PM PST up reply actions
Who'd really like to work for Mike Garrett?
By my way of thinking, this makes it a tough position to fill with a quality hire. You never know how it’d work out in the long run, but if I’m a Mike Riley type I give this program a wide berth.
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