How did the Seattle Seahawks come up with their name?

Long before Pete Carroll and John Schneider came to the Seattle Seahawks in 2010, the team existed. I know that is difficult to believe. Heck, I don't even blame you if you just became a teenager because you would only know that your favorite team was coached by Carroll and Schneider was the GM.

But Seattle was awarded an expansion team in 1975 and began playing real games in 1976. Seattle did not have a name for the expansion franchise prior to playing, but then-managing general partner Herman Sarkowsky and his mates had a good idea. They let the fans - fans who would become known as 12s - choose the name.

To be fair, there were a ton of bad suggestions instead of the name of the team that would become the Seahawks. How would you like to be a fan of a team called the Aardvarks, Buffalo Chips, Diarrheas, Hydrofoils, Peckerwoods, or Roaches? Those were just some of the names suggested by fans after the team had requested them from fans.

The Seattle Seahawks got their name before the team began their first season in 1976

There were some pretty decent ones other than "Seahawks," though. Imagine being a 12 and going to a city wearing team colors and telling those citizens, "Go Electric Loggers!" or "Go Cutthroats!" or maybe "Go Bronze Bobcats!" That wouldn't be so bad, right?

Instead, 153 people turned in suggestions for "Seahawks." That might just go to show how smart the people of the Pacific Northwest are. Why not go with a name that is alliterative? Plus, a seahawk is a bird of prey meaning the Seattle football team can attack you, right? I mean, hopefully, that is what the soon-to-be-fan was thinking.

The name was approved by the NFL prior to the 1976 season so in three years the Seahawks will be participating in their 50th NFL season. Let's hope there is a Super Bowl victory that goes along with the celebration of the team's beginning.

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