It’s a good time to be a Seattle sports fan
Sunday against New England, the Seattle Seahawks will attempt to win their second consecutive Super Bowl, and I still can’t wrap my head around it.
Korbin McDonald | Argonaut
Honestly, I’m not used to having my favorite team be good and the Seahawks are not just good but really, really good.
It’s weird to hear Seahawks and ‘potential dynasty’ used in the same sentence because it wasn’t too long ago when some labeled Seattle as the most miserable sports city in America — and could you blame them?
In 2008, being a Seattle sports fan hit rock bottom.
The Sonics relocated to Oklahoma City and became the Thunder. The Seahawks were in contention, not for a playoff spot, but for a top pick in the NFL Draft. The Mariners were awful. To top it all off, Washington State’s football team went 2-11, while University of Washington was winless.
The world was ending — at least that’s what it seemed like for Seattle sports fans.
But in some ways, that’s what being a fan is all about — sticking with your favorite team through thick and thin, and when success is finally achieved, the taste is that much sweeter.
Growing up in Seattle, I couldn’t help but root for my hometown teams. I was fortunate to have a father and grandfather who were sports fanatics and took me to every sporting event possible.
My grandfather, sometimes without my parent’s permission, would get me out of school early, just so he could take me to Mariners’ games.
I was lucky enough to see Warren Moon, Ricky Waters, Cortez Kennedy and the rest of the great Seahawk players from the late 1990s play in the Kingdome. I even attended a couple Seahawk games when they played at Husky Stadium and John Kitna was the team’s quarterback.
Some of my earliest memories of sports were from 1995. I was 5 years old, and was in love with Ken Griffey Jr. and the Mariners. The fact that it was the season that saved the team from relocation made it even better.
A couple years later, the Seahawks went through the same thing. If it wasn’t for Paul Allen buying the team in 1997, it could very well be the California Seahawks — or some other name — playing in the Super Bowl this year.
About 10 years later, the luck ran out and the Sonics left and I’m still not over it.
It was tough sometimes to grow up as a Seattle sports fan, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It makes me appreciative of all the great moments, like what this year’s Seahawks team has been able to do.
If you’re a new fan, welcome aboard, but please stay humble and don’t become one of those arrogant fans, because while the Seahawks’ future looks good now, I know all too well how quickly it can change.
Soak it all in Sunday. Root your hardest, and as always — Go Hawks.
Korbin McDonald can be reached at [email protected]