JERSEY CITY, N.J. —They hang off the balcony of apartments just down the street from Seahawks Way. They’re in restaurant windows. And there’s a football field-sized one draped across the Boeing complex near Interstate 405.
The “12th Man” banners are everywhere in the Seattle area. And the fans behind them showed up in droves as the Super Bowl-bound Seahawks drove from team headquarters to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Sunday. Not even One Direction draws this kind of screaming crowd.
“It was unreal. We would see fans on the overpasses, on the highway, and when we got closer to the airport it was crazy,” defensive end Cliff Avril said at the Westin in Jersey City, the Seahawks’ hotel for Super Bowl XLVIII. “Usually that last part of the ride takes about one to two minutes, and it took us nearly 20 minutes. We were pounding on the windows and they were yelling. The city is on fire, man.”
Coach Pete Carroll put it simply: “The 12s were out in force.”
The NFC champion Seahawks bathed in the attention. Under Carroll’s direction, they aren’t trying to pretend this isn’t a big deal. He said the 15-3 team is prepared for Super Bowl week, which is an endless assault of media obligations that are about selling the game more than playing in it.
“When we made that flight across the country, we knew we were coming here to play the biggest game of the season,” said Carroll, comparing Super Bowl coverage to a big college bowl game when he was coaching USC. “We feel like have been preparing for this the last few years. We didn’t talk about the Super Bowl, but we expected to be here.”
Carroll supervises an interesting bunch of players, celebrating their individualism as long as they maintain their discipline.
He lets the players be themselves, but only if they invest in the team first. Painted above endless doorways at team headquarters are the words “I am In!” The message is impossible to ignore. Any player that does, he’s not with the Seahawks for long.
“I appreciate that you recognize there is a tremendous amount of discipline that goes into doing what we’re doing,” Carroll said. “To play the game that we play and the style and the level and all of that, it all stems from that. That’s from buying in from the players. They’re willing to … follow the direction of the thing and stay with it, and give it everything they have. Not just on the football field; I’m talking about the mental side of it and preparing and all of that. I think there is a lot of respect around here. We respect the guys, they understand that, but they have to toe the line.”
Carroll clearly enjoyed his banter with the media Sunday. He jokingly said “You care?” when reporters asked how he was doing.
Carroll isn’t worried what his players will say to the media. He has fostered an attitude of trust, while cultivating an edge in their play perhaps never before seen in Seattle. That helps explain why thousands of fans blocked International Drive near Sea-Tac and why a few dozen decked out in navy-blue jackets and lime-green caps greeted the team at the Westin.
“Coming here from the airport to here, just the energy and excitement makes it special,” said quarterback Russell Wilson. “There are so many 12s around supporting us. In cities everywhere. Their passion is unbelievable, and we want to reward them (by winning the Seahawks’ first NFL title).”
Troy E. Renck: trenck@denverpost.com or twitter.com/troyrenck
