CHANDLER, Ariz. – If Seattle defeats New England in Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, Pete Carroll will become the first coach in football history to win two Super Bowls and two national champions at the collegiate level.
Last year, when the Seahawks won their first Vince Lombardi Trophy, Carroll joined Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer as the only coaches to win a national title in college and a Super Bowl.
And yet Carroll – at 63 the NFL’s second-oldest coach to the New York Giants’ Tom Coughlin (68) — never is mentioned as one of the greatest coaches of all time and may never be, unlike his New England counterpart, Bill Belichick.
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll celebrates during Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2, 2014, in East Rutherford, N.J. (Matt Slocum/AP Photo)
If the Patriots beat the Seahawks, Belichick will win his fourth Super Bowl, tying Chuck Noll for the most in history.
After he arrived at Super Bowl XLIX, Belichick sounded like the president of the Pete Carroll fan club.
“There’s no way I could, in a brief amount of time, express the amount of admiration and respect that I have for that organization, in particular Pete Carroll,” Belichick. “I think that Pete’s one of the great coaches in my time.
“We kind of came up together in the same vintage and have similar experiences as coordinators and head coaches at various places along the way.
“I never worked with Pete (but), of course, I followed him into New England, and what he’s done at USC and now in his five years with Seattle is beyond impressive.”
Seattle is Carroll’s third head-coaching job. He was fired after one season as the New York Jets’ head coach in 1994.
He resurfaced in 1997, replacing Bill Parcells at New England. The Patriots made the playoffs the first season, and Carroll was fired by owner Robert Kraft two years later.
Carroll got another head-coaching job in 2001 at USC and led the Trojans to two national championships before bolting for Seattle in 2010. Because of NCAA violations under Carroll, the Trojans were forced to vacate one national title.
“I tried to study him closely and learn from many of the things that he and his organization have done,” Belichick said. “I’ve watched them build that organization very carefully.
“Although we haven’t competed directly with them since early in 2012, it’s very obvious to me now why they were the world champions last year and why they’re here again this year.
“They have an outstanding organization. They’re very well-coached. They have a lot of great players. They’re very disciplined. They’re tough. They play very consistently. They’re a great fourth-quarter team. To say in short, they do everything well most all of the time.”
Which is a tribute to Carroll and his staff.
“I really feel like it’s an honor to compete with Seattle and with coach Carroll and his outstanding staff this week. We know it’s going to be a great matchup.”
Perhaps Belichick was trying to kill Carroll with kindness.
When the Patriots win, Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady get most of the credit. When the Seahawks win, it’s more about players and strategy, seldom about Carroll doing a great job.
And yet Carroll’s imprint is all over Seattle having a chance to be the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls for the first time since the Patriots 10 years ago in Super Bowl XXIX.
“Always compete,” cornerback Richard Sherman said about Carroll’s signature line. “That’s kind of what we talk about, always competing at the highest level and preparing the right way.
“Also, just enjoying the game. Enjoying the game for what it’s worth, and we’re just so grateful.”
Carroll has always been known as a players’ coach who gives them a lot of freedom on and off the field. But they better produce.
“I think it’s pretty cool,” defensive end Michael Bennett said. “I think a lot of times players feel so confined by who other people want us to be. I think it’s good that Pete lets people be themselves.
“When you do that, you get wins. You think about any successful business in America right now, and it’s all about letting people be themselves and letting them work.
“Sometimes when you have people doing too much, they just forget who they are, and they aren’t happy. And when you’re happy, you do a lot of things better.”
Carroll admitted this week that he’s a much better coach in his third time around. His career record is 82-61, including four years with the Jets and Patriots and the last five with the Seahawks.
Fans and media in cities that hired coaches like Gary Kubiak (Denver), Chicago (John Fox), Rex Ryan (Buffalo) and Jack Del Rio (Oakland) should consider how well Belichik and Carroll have done after being fired.
“It’s just experiences,” Carroll said about his success with the Seahawks. “This is a really difficult job the first time. There are so many things that happen in this position that you just can’t predict and you just don’t know and you don’t see it coming in your preparation.
“You just have to deal with it as it hits you. Everybody is going to falter and make mistakes and say, ‘I wish I would have known then what I know now.’ Unfortunately, what doesn’t always happen is guys get enough time to work through those early years so that you can find your way and you can find your voice and you can find your perspective.
“So guys often get kicked out. I got kicked out after one year at the Jets. I didn’t even get started figuring that thing out. I was a mess. But those experiences are extraordinarily valuable, and I can see why owners look to a guy who’s had experiences. It’s based on the accumulated experiences that give you more wisdom, more understanding.”
And if helps, of course, to have a general manager who’s a wizard when it comes to personnel. Carroll works closely with John Schneider.
“If you do this right, you have to give it everything you have forever,” Carroll said. “That’s what we do football-wise. That’s why it’s so crucial to have a guy that you can lean on.
“If John’s looking (at players), it’s the same thing as if I’m looking. We’ve converged in that manner so that we could operate at a really high level. It’s crucial to have the combination of expertise to do this. and I’m so fortunate I do this with John. Without John, we would be nowhere.”
Author John McClain has covered the NFL for the Houston Chronicle for more than 30 years. Visit seattlepi.com for more Seattle Seahawks news. Contact sports editor Nick Eaton at 206-448-8125, nickeaton@seattlepi.com or @njeaton.