Highs and Lows Only Seattle Sports Fans Would Understand

While Seattle might best be known for gray skies and rainy days, the city's sports teams have, at times, provided some sunny moments over the course of time.

Unfortunately, even with popular teams like the Seahawks, Mariners and Sounders having recent success, like every city's sports history, the Emerald City's has a few low times, too, making fans even more depressed than the aforementioned drizzle.

Through all the ups and downs, Seattle has persevered—so here's to you who love drinking Rainier while wearing your 12th Man Hawks jersey.

Widely considered to be one of the top linebackers in college football during his era at the University of Oklahoma, former linebacker Brian Bosworth was as hyped up as any incoming player of the past 25 years.

And the Seattle Seahawks were the prized team that was able to snatch him up.

Costing the team a first-round pick by selecting him in the supplemental draft in 1987, Hawks fans were pumped to see the eclectic electricity that The Boz had to bring to the Northwest, with expectations of transforming the position.

As much excitement as Brian Bosworth brought the city with his flare and unique style, his play—nor his body—was able to handle the grind of the NFL game.

Never playing a full season worth of games, The Boz lasted just three, short-lived seasons for the Seahawks, unable to overcome various injuries that wore him down.

His most memorable moment for the Hawks was, unfortunately, being bulldozed over by former running back Bo Jackson on national TV during a Monday Night Football game against the Los Angeles Raiders in Bosworth's rookie season of 1987.

The play all but showed the numerous inept decisions that then Seahawks owner Ken Behring made, with the team's prized player taking the brunt of the damage on the field.

Other than one of their rivals, the Los Angeles Galaxy, the MLS' Seattle Sounders might have the deepest and most talented team in the entire league.

Led by stars with national team experience like captain Clint Dempsey and defender Brad Evans of the United States and Obafemi Martins of Nigeria, the Sounders have had tremendous success since their inaugural season in 2009. They've collected four U.S. Open Cup titles in six years and set attendance records during friendlies against two European powers, FC Barcelona and Manchester United.

With all that star power and an atmosphere in CenturyLink Field that rivals stadiums in the soccer-crazed continent of Europe, it's no surprise the Sounders have won various trophies.

As any Seattle soccer fan knows, as unbelievable as the Sounders have been in their six seasons, the one trophy that has eluded them has been the ultimate prize in the MLS—the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy, otherwise known as the league's championship trophy.

After winning the Western Conference regular-season championship in 2014, the Sounders may have been the team to beat in the knockout round. However, they were unable to capitalize on that momentum, losing to the Los Angeles Galaxy in the conference finals due to the league’s new away-goal tiebreaker rule.

It was just one of many close calls for the club, who has yet to make its first MLS Cup appearance in history.

Behind a bruising running attack led by 2005 NFL MVP Shaun Alexander, the Seattle Seahawks were able to reach their first Super Bowl since entering the league in 1976.

With a regular-season record of 13-3 that year, the Hawks finished as the No. 1 seed in the NFC, defeating both the Washington Redskins and Carolina Panthers to face the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XL, for the chance to capture their first Lombardi Trophy.

The Super Bowl trip was the culmination of years of heartache for the team's fanbase, the 12th Man, which, after the No. 12 was retired in 1984 to honor the fans, became its signature moment.

OK, so, as any lifelong sports fan knows, it's always a little bit petty blaming a referee for a heartbreaking loss, as it's the one excuse that seems to cause the most hate from fellow fans.

But, for those Seattle Seahawks fans who lived through the Super Bowl XL loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers and argued that their were a few questionable calls in key situations, it's actually an argument worth stating.

That's because, after the 12's were on cloud nine about the team's first-ever Super Bowl appearance, head referee of that game, Bill Leavy, admitted that his crew made the mistakes Hawks fans questioned—and it only took him four years later!

One of the best moments in Seattle sports history, when Ken Griffey Jr. slid into home plate ahead of the tag to eliminate the New York Yankees in the 1995 American League Division Series, left fans with a memory that will last forever.

Simply known as "The Double," the run didn't only cap the series in the 11th inning, but it also completed a remarkable comeback that the Seattle Mariners overcame throughout the series, first down 2-0 in the series, then tying the game in the eighth inning.

Seeing how it was the most dominating player in the majors during the '90s who scored it, Ken Griffey Jr., is appropriate given how Junior provided so many moments that left Seattle sports fans picking up their jaws.

The guy was unbelievable in his 13 seasons with the M's, hitting 417 homers, collecting 10 Gold Gloves and winning his only league MVP of his career—but the numbers themselves don't even do the guy justice as to what he brought the franchise.

Playing together on the Seattle Mariners from 1994-'98, three of the best players that the game has ever seen made up one incredible trio, as Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez and Randy Johnson all called Seattle home for years.

With such talent in one locker room, one would think that the team would have won a World Series at some point, right?

Wrong.

Though they put up Hall of Fame numbers, the three could never take the team to the promised land, and, beginning in 1998, the front office saw that it was time to start going in a different direction as the superstars became too expensive to keep together.

That year brought the trade of Johnson to the Houston Astros. A year later, the team, hesitantly following a request, shipped Griffey to his hometown Cincinnati Reds. 2001 saw A-Rod ink the biggest contract in sports history at the time with the division-rival Texas Rangers.

Sure, the team never won a title with the three of them, but in the years that they all departed Seattle, fans were left wondering what if.

Who knew that former University of Washington head football coach Don James would embark on such success after leaving Kent State for the Huskies in 1975?

During the 18 seasons that James occupied the sidelines at Husky Stadium, his teams went 150-60-2, reaching six Rose Bowl Games, sharing the 1991 national title and establishing the school as one of college football's great programs.

For his part, James is acknowledged as the greatest coach in Huskies history, as The Dawgfather took the school to heights never before seen prior to resigning in 1993 after disagreements with U-Dub's administration and amid NCAA penalties.

As much fun as the Washington Huskies football team and their fans has during the Don James era, the 22 seasons that have followed haven't brought as much joy.

With just one double-digit win season in that period, the Huskies have gone through six coaching hires since James left the program. The team reached rock bottom in both 2004 when it finished 1-10 under then-head coach Kevin Gilbertson and also was a miserable 0-12 in 2008 in Tyrone Willingham's last season on the Husky sidelines.

Fans may have reason to believe in Chris Petersen—who was hired before the 2014 season and did wonders at Boise State—but gone are the stable days that Don James brought to U-Dub.

A two-sport athlete who was drafted in the MLB draft at one point, the Seattle Seahawks changed their entire franchise when they drafted quarterback Russell Wilson in the third round (75th overall) in the 2012 NFL draft.

Not expected to be more than a project when he first entered training camp, stuck behind free-agent acquisition Matt Flynn, Wilson's maturity and leadership forced head coach Pete Carroll to name him the starter to begin the season.

All Danger Russ has done since is go 36-12 in the regular season, take the team to the playoffs in each of his three seasons, earn two Pro Bowl nods and, of course, win the team's first-ever Super Bowl, with a chance to repeat this season.

The guy is a damn saint in Seattle, even making weekly trips to the Children's Hospital too.

Although the aforementioned Russell Wilson has stabilized the quarterback position for the Seattle Seahawks since they drafted him 75th overall in 2012, another signal-caller who used to wear No. 3 for the team is one that fans would otherwise forget.

That guy's name? Rick Mirer.

Drafted No. 2 overall in 1993, the former Notre Dame product was expected to transform the team and help take it to the glory Wilson has since 2012.

Largely considered the biggest bust in franchise history, Mirer had a forgettable four seasons with the Seahawks, finishing with a record of 20-31 and throwing 76 interceptions to 50 touchdowns.

NBA fans have been enamored with the ridiculous skills of Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant ever since he entered the league and led the team to an NBA Finals appearance and won the 2014 league MVP.

Don't forget, though, Durant was drafted by the, since defunct, Seattle SuperSonics, though.

Anyone in Seattle surely remembers that, as the team took the former Texas Longhorns star No. 2 in the 2007 NBA draft, believing they had the future superstar he has become today.

Prior to KD, the team enjoyed seasons with All-Stars Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp, too, who helped guide the franchise to the NBA Finals in 1996—losing to the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls—and showing that Seattle was one of the most rockin' places for NBA games.

Forget the shocked feeling of the No. 1-seeded Seattle Sonics getting eliminated in the 1994 NBA playoffs by the eighth-seeded Denver Nuggets—though, that wasn't, particularly, a roaring moment, either—because the lowest point came when the team relocated to Oklahoma City in 2008.

As any fan who has lived through a team moving knows, it's about the biggest kick and punch to the gut that can happen, as money-hungry owners—like Clay Bennett—ignore the fans who have flocked to the arena through good and bad times, buying both tickets and team merchandise as support.

Making matters worse, as the city of Seattle holds out hope to reacquire or receive an expansion team, as of right now, all records and history from the Sonics have evaporated, with young Seattleites unaware of anything the team accomplished in its 41 years.

I know I echo all fellow Seattle residents when I say, "bring 'em back!"

No other team has won more games in the over 100-year history of major league baseball than the 2001 Seattle Mariners—which may the greatest team to never win a World Series.

Finishing with an absurd 116-46 record, the team was carried by Japanese import Ichiro Suzuki, who electrified the organization, city and baseball with his unique style of play and endearing personality, leading him to the AL Rookie of the Year and league MVP awards.

It also brought a new era of baseball to Seattle, as former superstars like Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson and Alex Rodriguez had nothing to do with this team that set a win record that may never be matched again.

As unbeatable as the 2001 Seattle Mariners were during the regular season, the postseason turned out to be a major dud for them.

Losing just 46 games all season, the M's not only needed the full five games to advance out of the first round by beating the Cleveland Indians. However, their dreams of winning a title crashed down in Yankee Stadium against the New York Yankees, who disposed of Seattle in just five games during the American League Championship Series before going on to lose in the World Series to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

In a city that was starving for its first world championship in any sport since the Seattle Sonics won the 1979 NBA title, the 2001 MLB postseason is something that Seattleites prefer not to talk about.

After urging a sale be approved to a Seattle-based group, the former owners of the Sacramento Kings thought that they had agreed upon a deal that would bring NBA hoops back to the Emerald City.

Fans flushed into the streets in new and old Sonics gear, celebrating the news as if the team just won a championship and welcoming a team in the Kings that actually had some decent pieces like up-and-coming star DeMarcus Cousins.

With the city approving a proposed arena plan, residents partied and bought drinks for the man who believed that he was bringing a team to the city, Chris Hansen.

The news erased the pain of the team moving years earlier—for the moment, at least.

Talk about being left at the altar.

Following the party that came when news broke out that Seattle would be getting an NBA team back, when NBA owners didn't approve the deal, the tease on fans may have hurt just as bad as when the team relocated in the first place.

Thanks to some last-minute maneuvering by the league to allow one last effort for the city of Sacramento to find an owner and build a new arena, the franchise remained in Northern California, causing one fanbase to celebrate, and another—up in Seattle—to sulk...again.

The pain will continue until the league approves a team in the city.