The Best Day of My Life

I am now one month away from turning 32. And this is the Seahawks 30th season in the National Football League. So, for pretty much my entire life, I've rooted for this team. And like no other. Sure, I like the Mariners and Sonics just fine. I want them to win. And face it...the run by the 1995 Mariners is still probably the most thrilling ride this area has ever seen (considering all the circumstances surounding it). And I was way more than thrilled when the Sabercats won the WCHL title in 1999. But for all my life, the Seahawks have always been #1 in my heart. I remember sitting in our first house on my dads lap watching their early years when the stars were Jim Zorn and Steve Largent. In the fall of 1979, my dad was telling me all week about how the Seahawks had to play the 49ers and their great running back, O.J. Simpson that Sunday. It turns out that he did all that to cover up the fact that my mom was leaving us that week. I still remember watching the game, and my mom calling me over to her so she could explain why she was leaving us. I remember I cried alot...then, after she left, I turned my attention back to the game on the tv. And I still remember the first Super Bowl we watched in our new house back then in 1980. It was the Steelers vs the Rams. And, at one point, I asked my dad if the Seahawks would ever get to play in the Super Bowl. "We'll get there someday" he told me.

And I sat there with my dad every Sunday for years and years after that. No matter what was going on that week, what we were arguing about, what we had to do that day, the two of us sat there watching every play, every down, every game. Whatever our differences were, we still had our basic love of the Seahawks to bring us together for at least those few hours.

They had a few good years back in the mid-80's. Led by Dave Krieg, Curt Warner, Steve Largent, Kenny Easley, Dave Brown (RIP), Joe Nash, Jeff Bryant, Fredd Young and Jacob Green. The coach was "Ground" Chuck Knox. Then there were the darker years. The Ken Behring era. For those not in the know, Ken Behring was simply a weasel. He bought the team from the Nordstrom brothers with the intent on driving the franchise into the ground so he could move them to California. Oakland was his first choice. But after the Raiders moved back to Oakland and the Rams took off to St. Louis, he tried to get them into Los Angeles. He even moved some of the teams stuff down there and held a make-shift practice...on the field of some junior high school, even! That proved what a cheep bastard he really was.

But the NFL said "no". They knew that there was plenty of fan support in the Puget Sound area. The Seahawks at one point had a 10 year waiting list for season tickets. And games in the Kingdome sold out just mere minutes after they went on sale in late summer. So they knew that there was a strong market here. They just had to find the right owner to prop the franchise back on it's feet. So they forced the weasel to sell the team.

------------------------------------------

For once, it was actually SUNNY today (lol). And it was one of those days that just had that feeling to it. For example; there's this one huge rock just off the on-ramp from 56th street on I-5 in Tacoma. As long as I can remember, it's always been full of graffiti. I think if you went up to it with a can of laquer thinner, you could probably go through about 6 inches of paint to get back to the original rock. Today, it was painted blue with a #12 on it and the words "GO HAWKS". Vandalism never looked so good (haha).

And all along the freeway in Tacoma, there were homemade signs that read various things like "Go Hawks" and "Fear the 12th Man". The 12th man flag on the Tacoma Dome flapped true. As we rode the bus up to Qwest Field, people would drive up next to our bus and give us the #1 sign with their fingers. And we, of course, gave it right back to them.

The atmosphere around the stadium itself was electric. People were jamming into the various sportswear shops up and down the street buying everything Seahawks. Chants were ringing through the streets like "Let's go Seahawks", "Panthers suck" and "Super Bowl". And after wading through a freakishly long security line, Touchdown City was about 10x's more packed than I had ever seen it. Alot of people stood around tv sets watching the Steelers dismantle the Broncos in the AFC Championship game.

And it was more of the same inside the actual stadium. The Seahawks team shop was crammed up like you wouldn't believe! I was sent on a mission in there for someone and failed miserably simply because I couldn't get around in there (lol). On the north steps of Qwest Field, the Husky marching band was putting on a show. People were already hi-fiving each other...and the game hadn't even begun yet. I personally lost count of the people who wanted to hi-five me at 15 (lol). Of course, I was more than happy to oblige anyone who wanted one.

After eating my usual Ivar's 5-piece fish and chips, I went out to meet and greet a few people. The first ones I went to were Jenna and her mom (who I never learned her name...lol). They sat next to me in Husky Stadium while the Hawks played there between the Kingdome and Qwest. I hadn't talked to them all season. So it was nice to catch up with them. Then I went over to chat a little with Jerry and Elizabeth. They had come over to my seat the last two or three games. So I told them when I was up in Everett on Friday night that it was my turn to go visit them (lol). Then it was back over to my seat to be with Dan, his new girlfriend (whose name I can't remember now. But she's really f'n cool...lol).

After going through all the pre-game stuff, they did the national anthem. Usually, at the Seahawk games, they do the anthem before they introduce the players. My best guess is that they do it that way to keep the crowd buzzing. FOX brought in some American Karaoke chick to sing it. Oh, she was hot and sang it well. But I think if it was up to us, we would have liked to have seen a Seattle singer sing it. Like, say, Ann Wilson or Geoff Tate (who have both done it numerous times before and are always popular). Even Sea-Gal Trina would have been a good choice (as she was last week. And, if I may say so myself, is a much better singer than the Karaoke contestant by far!).

After the coin toss, it was time for the raising of the 12th Man flag. Usually, it's not much of a secret as to who's doing it. But it had been all this week. While I was over talking to Jerry and Elizabeth, I asked them if they had any clue. One of their kids works in the Hawks front office and usually knows. But she couldn't tell Elizabeth when she asked her on Friday because she was ordered not to. But then, on Satuday, Julie went ahead and told Elizabeth anyway. So I was already in on the secret beforehand (lol).

Back in my seat, I could hear a little commotion behind us. Not a bad one. But one of joy and excitement. Then on the big screen, the introduction began. It went a little something like this:

His dad took him to Husky games as a young boy

And from that, a passion for football was lit

Then in 1995

In the franchises darkest hour

He saved our Seahawks

And that was pretty much that. The crowd immedietly knew who it was. And the stadium roared with a deafening level of noise that I had never heard before in my life. And it was at that point, we all knew that this was OUR day. That nothing....NOTHING....was gonna stop us. How could any visiting team not get flustered by that roar? How could a home team not feel invincible with all that screaming humanity behind them and their efforts? And the reason that it was us here in the northwest watching that game and making all that noise and not Los Angeles was the one and only Paul Allen. It was his passion (and face it...his money...lol) that had gotten us out of the Behring era and to this point. And once again, as they usually do, whoever puts the stuff together for the Seahawks punched all the right buttons with us. Unlike most of the other teams in other sports, the Seahawks make sure that they let us know that, in the beginning, middle and end, it's all about us...the fans. And that's been the message sent forth by Paul Allen from day one.

And rightfully so, it was Paul Allen who raised the 12th Man flag. Thank you Mr. Allen! Thank you for this day!

All of you saw the game, I'm sure. It was an ass-whuppen from start to finish. I won't go into the usual things about what happened during the game. But I will say this. All year long, the Seahawks have shut their doubters up. I think I heard one so-called expert pick the Seahawks to win this game. Everyone else went on and on about how Carolina was gonna win. They talked about how Steve Smith was gonna burn up the Seahawks secondary. Well, 5 catches for 33 yards isn't exactly burning up a secondary. They said Shaun Alexander isn't a big game running back. I think 130+ yards in the NFC Championship game pretty much took that sick dog out back and shot it. Now the early buzz is that the Steelers are the favorites in the Super Bowl. They're a tough team...no doubt about it. But this has been one of those years where the Seahawks have just gone out there week after week and shut the so-called experts up. So keep on doubting us. It's worked for us so far!!!

When it was all over, Dan and I didn't give each other our usual hi-ten. This time, we just shook each others hand. He's been a season ticket holder since day one. And he also has heard from me about how much the team means to me and how when I finally got up enough money, I bought my season ticket that I had always wanted. So we know how much this means to the two of us. And this Wednesday, I'm gonna make an exception to my weekday hockey rule and wade through the traffic on I-5 to go to the Silvertips game just so I can celebrate a little bit with Jerry and Elizabeth. As for Jenna and her mom...they'll just have to wait until next season (lol).

See, it's not just about only the team. It's about how the team (or, in the hockey realm for me, the game) draws us together. People we don't know ahead of time, we form this bond. People we turn out to really like that we wouldn't have met if it wasn't for the team. We live through all the highs and lows. And trust me...over 30 years rooting for the Seahawks, there have been alot of lows (lol). It's something we have in common. And on days like this, it's those friendships that make the teams success so much sweeter to us. That's what makes sports so special.

-------------------------------

Walking out of the stadium, I could hear my cell phone ringing and text messages being sent. I just ignored them all. I was still in a daze...trying to come to grips that what had just happened really did happen. Was it a dream? I mean, we're Seattle sports fans. Our teams are supposed to choke when it comes to crunch time. But the whole time, I could only think of one call that I wanted to make. The one call that would be the first after the game was over.

When I got on the bus and it started moving, I whipped out my cell phone and called my dad. When he answered, I immedietly told him "we did it, dad". After I said that, I know I was choking back the tears. I could tell he was too when he cracked out "yes we did". Then I said "you told me we would one of these days 26 years ago". To which he said "I know. You know I wouldn't lie to you". I said something like "yeah". Then he told me "you barely have a voice. You better rest it a little so you can tell me all about it tomorrow".

And I will. There's nobody else in the world that I want to share this time with more.