Pete Carroll used to oversee the roster decisions that the Seattle Seahawks made. General manager John Schneider had great input, sure, but the final decision was made by the head coach. One of those choices was to take running back Rashaad Penny in the first round of the 2018 draft.
The move didn't work out. Penny, when healthy, flashed greatness. The issue was that he was rarely healthy, flamed out in Seattle, and then spent one more season in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2024. Still, Carroll's approach to coaching influences Penny now.
That is because Penny, who retired from the NFL after so many injuries, is now the coach at Jordan High in Long Beach, California. What the new coach hopes to do is bring the same kind of energy to the high school level that Carroll had in the pros.
Failed Seattle Seahawks first-rounder Rashaad Penny wants to bring the Pete Carroll approach
Penny told the Seattle Times, "I used to take kickoff returns at practice, and this guy used to run down the field with me. At the time he was probably 67 or 70, whatever age he was. That was truly impressive, every kickoff-return day, to see that. The energy was contagious. Everybody was just always in a good mood. To try to recreate that environment in a high school is super cool, to let them know that football is supposed to be fun. It’s not a miserable sport. You can’t be miserable playing football. If you are, that’s a program problem or coach’s problem."
Nothing sounds more like Pete Carroll than the last part of that. No one has likely ever had more infectious energy than the former Seahawks head coach. Annoyingly so to some, as Carroll never seemed to shut off the constant positivity, even when what was happening with his team wasn't so positive.
That approach does radiate with others, though, and that includes Rashaad Penny, who has never been a coach before but has played football long enough that he should have a fairly firm grasp on how to run a high school program.
The former running back was a star when he played for Norwalk High, and in his senior season had 3,416 total yards and 51 touchdowns. After playing well at San Diego State, the Seattle Seahawks took a chance on him that the team couldn't have known would work out so poorly.
After playing in 14 games as a rookie, he wouldn't play more than 10 in any of his remaining five seasons in the league. He was so good when he was available that he led the NFL in yards per carry (6.3) in 2021, and averaged 5.6 over the course of his career.
Unfortunately, Pete Carroll's career didn't end very well, either. After being pushed out of Seattle after the 2023 season, he coached the Las Vegas Raiders for one season in 2025. His team was awful, and he was fired. Raiders fans will not remember the coach fondly, but Seahawks fans will. He was too successful, too good a guy, and too positive to be disliked in the Pacific Northwest.
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