If you get a chance to go to Training Camp... Go!

The Seahawks have announced that Training Camp will be open to the public, but you need to register for a spot on Seahawks.com starting July 16 at 10 am pacific time. I don't know what things will be like at the VMAC in Renton... I don't know how close you'll be able to get to the players and coaches, but if the atmosphere is anything like it was in Cheney, you shouldn't think twice about trying to make it to one of these practices.

The VMAC is a football palace, but I'm already missing those training camps at EWU. Sure it was too hot and too remote, but it was amazing how close you could get to the players. The first time I went was in 1998, and when I saw Joey Galloway running towards me onto the field I brandished my Galloway jersey and word-barfed something like "Wooo! Joey! Yeah! Woooooo!" He actually saw me, noticed I was wearing his jersey and gave me the the "reverse nod + sup" move. THAT made my day.

I went again in 2006 with my little brother (all the pics are right here on flickr)... look how close we were able to get to the players:







Here's what I wrote back then (some of it looks pretty foolish in retrospect, of course)...

This is one of the only instances where there can be actual (albeit limited) interaction between players and fans, and thankfully no players acted like prima donna dickholes on Saturday.

As players passed by, I shouted to Walter Jones that he was the best player in the NFL and was headed to the Hall of Fame… I told Matt that this was HIS year to be NFL MVP, and I told Lofa Tatupu that he got robbed of the defensive rookie of the year award last year. I yelped at Jerramy Stevens that this was his year to be all-pro, and he gave me a big grin and said “that’s right.”

While I was jabbering away, my little brother James was getting autographs from players like Mack Strong, Lofa, Marcus Trufant and Julian Peterson. James had a blast… It was well worth the 4-hour round trip from the Tri-Cities and back.

Some cool moments:

-We got to hear Holmgren get pissed and yell at the team a couple of times.

-We saw up close that Ryan Plackemeier could be a dominant punter once he gains some consistency

-Cool plays: Kelly Herndon jumped a route to make a spectaclar interception, and D.J. Hackett made a Tecmo Bowl-esque leaping TD catch over two defenders. The best moment was during the 1st team scrimmage.. Without anyone to throw to, Hass ran for a TD. Of course, no one was going to touch him and risk injuring our most indispensable asset. The crowd let out a cheer, and Hass gave a wave and a couple of quick bows. It was a cute little moment from our bald spaz of a QB…

All in all it was a great time. If you are a Seahawks fan and have the means, you should get out to Cheney to enjoy the spectacle this month.

What was true in '06 is still true now. I just hope the move to the VMAC doesn't suck all the organic fun out of the experience.

Any of you have memories of going to past training camps to share?

Top 10 Seahawks Plays of the Decade

Not much explanation needed here: The 10 best plays of the decade.

10. Shaun Alexander's 88-yard Gallop (2001 v. Raiders)

SA ran for 266 yard that night on SNF, and 88 of them came on this go-ahead, game-sealing touchdown jaunt. Unfortunately I can't find a clip, but I vividly remember SA glancing up at the Husky Stadium jumbotron for a little help avoiding the Oakland Raiders who were in hot pursuit.

9. Nasty Nate's Punt Return (2006 v. Rams)



The Seahawks hadn't scored since before halftime, were trailing 16-14 and were playing like Night of the Living Dead-type zombies. After Nate Burleson's electrifying 90 yard punt return, the Hawks took the lead and started playing like 28 Days Later-type zombies... Rage Virus! Grrrrr!

8. Hass to Hackett in OT (2005 v. NYG)

After Feely's 3rd miss, the Seahawks STILL hadn't gotten anything going on offense for what seemed like half the game... The Hawks finally shifted the game's momentum and struck into Giants territory when Beck threw a perfect downfield strike to DJ Hackett. My favorite part of this play? In the NFL Films footage, you can see Ruskell on the sideline jumping up and down like he just won the Showcase Showdown on The Price is Right.

7. Josh Brown's 54-yard game winner (2006 at STL)



Man, I love the reaction of the Rams fans in that clip... The Seahawk fans celebrating though? Dude... DON'T tuck in your jersey. Massive fail there. Everyone else? Buy some team apparel... yeesh.

As I've said before in this space... The Hawks came back from a 21-7 halftime deficit, overcame a back-breakingly spectacular TD catch by Torry Holt, won on that 54 yard FG at the gun, and made Scott Linehan look like a jabbering idiot.

6. Hass hits K-Rob (2003 at SF)

Needing a win to keep their playoff hopes alive, the Hawks spotted SF a 14-0 lead before clawing back into the lead in the 3rd quarter. Matt Hasselbeck made a gorgeous, "drop it in the bucket" throw to a tightly covered Koren Robinson, who, despite his reputation, made a brilliant catch. The Hawks would never trail after than play, and would make the playoffs for only the 2nd time since 1988.

5. Marcus Trufant Pick-6 (2007 Wild Card v. DC)



The Hawks were trying to hold a 21-14 lead in the 2007 playoffs v. DC, and Marcus Trufant made this astounding play to seal the win. Well, that's actually not accurate.. Trufant, assisted by a series of crushing downfield blocks, sealed the win. The only time I've ever heard Qwest louder than that moment was during the 2005 NFC title game...

4. Big Play Babs Intercepts Bledsoe, Sets up JB for the win (2005 v. Dallas)

Josh Brown deservedly gets credit for the game winning FG, but on the previous play Jordan Babineaux stepped in front of a REALLY bad decision by Drew Bledsoe. Not only did he pick it off, but he streaked down the sideline and into field goal range. Not only did he advance the ball into field goal range, but he had the presence of mind to step out of bounds with time remaining on the clock.

3. Romo Drops the Ball, Big Play Babs Brings Him Down (2006 Wild Card Playoff v. Dallas)



Every time I watch that, I'm amazed at the play Babs makes... He leaps over guys, he fights off Gramatica's "block" and tackles Romo INCHES short of a game-clinching first down. Yes, Romo's bobbled snap is what everyone remembers, but if not for BPB, Romo probably picks up that botched snap and scores the game winning TD. How humiliating would THAT have been?

2. Mack Strong Runs Wild (2005 NFC Divisional Playoff v. Washington)

The Seahawks hadn't won a playoff game in 21 seasons, and DC put up enough of a fight to make things tense for all 60 minutes. The Hawks faced a 3rd down in the 4th quarter nursing a 17-10 lead, and Mack Strong tore off 38 yards on a draw play to set up Josh Brown's game-icing FG.

1. Hass to Seneca (2005 NFC Championship Game v. Carolina)

I was at the game, and the eruption of noise after Seneca Wallace hauled in Hasselbeck's perfect pass was among the loudest I've ever heard at Qwest. Coming from the mind of usually conservative coach Mike Holmgren, the deep pass to our back-up QB said "I am holding nothing back to get this team to the mother f@*kin' Super Bowl." It doesn't hurt that Wallace made a sensational over-the-shoulder grab to beat former Hawk Ken Lucas. In the biggest NFL game ever played in Seattle, the Hawks dominated from this moment on.

New Banner... So Good or No Good?

What do y'all think? That's my amateur stab at it. I welcome anyone's attempt to make a more "professional" looking version... If it looks better, I'll use it and give you mad props in this space.

Somebody (Not Me) Needs to Do This...

If you're a fan of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (and if you aren't, why not?), you know about the legend of Greenman. Charlie basically dresses up in this bright green spandex bodysuit and goes f@*king apeshit (occasionally, he drops acid before donning the suit). With our franchise's inexorable momentum towards embracing the bright neon green, we need a heroic 12th Man to step up and don the Greenman suit at Qwest Field this fall.

I'd do it, but I'm too old, too fat and too far away to do the whole enterprise justice. You can get the costume here...

What are you waiting for?

We'll always love you, JJ (plus, we never gave you a staph infection... ewww)

Former Seahawk Joe Jurevicius is suing the hell out of the Cleveland Browns, claiming that a staph infection he caught at the Browns' facility contributed to the premature end of his career.

SEVEN Browns have caught staph infections since 2003. Gross... Ick. My antipathy towards the Browns and their organization is well documented, but this whole thing pushes them even further into Bush-league dirtbag status.

Another thing I love about Cleveland fans? They insist that you pretend they aren't a ten-year-old expansion team, and that the Ravens weren't at one time the original Cleveland Browns. It's like they were married to a woman named, oh, let's say... Bernice. Then Bernice left them and moved to Baltimore, where she got gastric bypass, a makeover, a great job and a better husband. Then THEY married Bernice's identical twin sister and INSISTED on calling her Bernice and pretending as if that nasty divorce business never happened. Pathetic.

Anyway, back to Joe J... He'll always have a special place in Seahawks history, even though he was only in Seattle for a single season. But what a season! JJ had career highs in receptions and touchdowns, and was a key contributor in the 2005 Super Bowl run. His two best games for Seattle helped lead to two of the biggest regular season wins in team history. He played in XXXV, XXXVII and XL, and won a ring with the 2002 Bucs.

Not to kick a guy when he's down, but if he had taken the generous offer from Ruskell to stay in Seattle back in 2006, he might still be playing... OUR facility isn't festooned with disgusting, infectious bacteria.