Seattle Seahawks
Yesterday, Pete Carroll announced that he was stepping down as the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks and retiring. Carroll enjoyed a remarkably successful career as a head coach in both college and in the NFL. He won back-to-back National Championships in college with the USC Trojans in 2003 and 2004. Later, he became the head coach of the Seahawks, and led that team to their first ever Super Bowl title in 2013, following a franchise record 13-3 regular season record. They were very solid the next season, winning the NFC West for a second straight season with a 12-4 record, and once again reaching the Super Bowl. But that Super Bowl ended in huge controversy for Carroll. In a back and forth game between two heavyweight, championship-caliber franchises, the Seahawks were trailing very late in the fourth quarter, 28-24, when they received help with a miraculous catch that put them in scoring position. Not much later, they were one yard away from taking a lead that most likely would have won the game for them.
On second and one, Carroll opted for a pass play. But it was a dangerous one, with quarterback Russell Wilson throwing right in the middle of the field after a quick release. New England's Malcom Butler stepped in and intercepted it, ending Seattle's scoring threat. No comeback win for the Seahawks, who had come so close to making history by achieving the rare feat of back-to-back titles.
It feels to me as if the Seahawks still have not fully recovered from that as a franchise.
Still, he was well-liked, a popular coach. He always seemed like a pretty decent guy, without the hard edges of some other football coaches. Despite his being 72 years old, many people believed that he was, in fact, considerably younger. He had a fit and youthful appearance for one. Also, he had a lot of energy, often jumping and running in excitement during the course of a game, despite his relatively advanced years.
There is one more thing that I personally remember Carroll for. This occurred in a regular season game in 1992 against the Miami Dolphins. When the placekicker there missed an extra point conversion following what should have been a tying touchdown, the camera caught a laughing Carroll making the choke sign on the sidelines. It was premature, however, as the Dolphins got the ball back and managed to successfully convert a field goal attempt for an outright win. That did not paint Carroll in a very flattering light.
Nevertheless, Carroll enjoyed tremendous success as an American football head coach. Both USC and the Seahawks enjoyed some of their most memorable and glorious moments during his tenure. When he won Super Bowl XLVIII, he became only the third head coach in history to win both the college football National Championship (twice), as well as a Super Bowl title.
Just hours after Carroll announced that he was retiring, college football's most successful head coach in history, Nick Saban of Alabama, also announced that he would step down and retire. He won 7 National Championships, one wit LSU, and all the rest with Alabama, who enjoyed stunning levels of dominance during his tenure.
Both will be difficult to replace.
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