WEST VANCOUVER – Luke and Max Chakrabarti were in Seattle when the Seahawks raised the Lombardi trophy for the first time in franchise history.
The brothers, aged 11 and nine, are part of the 12th man – an army of fans who have been known to cause seismic activity every Sunday the team plays at CenturyLink Field.
On July 5, the Chakrabarti brothers had the chance to meet several of their heroes when the 12 Tour traveled up the I-5 to Ambleside Park. Along with the trophy, the tour also brought members of the team, several Sea Gal cheerleaders, a flag football tournament and the Russell Wilson Passing Academy.
The Chakrabartis were both in the passing academy and learned a little about the fundamentals of football by completing drills and picking up advice from coaches or one of the Seahawks on hand.
Their father, Robin, is a season-ticket holder and was glad that his sons were able to participate in the camp.
“It was a unique opportunity to get to learn first-hand from a Super Bowl champion and a man of great character who plays for our hometown team,†he said.
Both brothers own lots of Seahawks clothing and their father even has a framed Wilson jersey with Super Bowl tickets and a couple magazine covers that hangs in his office.
“One of my friends said that he’s never seen a bigger Seahawks fan than me,†said Luke.
Both Luke and Max played for the White Rock Titans when they were younger, but had to make a decision to stop when it interfered with them playing rep hockey, something Wilson is very familiar with.
The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback has been drafted into Major League Baseball three times – by Baltimore in 2007, Colorado in 2010 and Texas in 2013 – but decided to put his football career first.
Prior to playing opposite to him for the NFL championship in New Jersey, Wilson told the media that he attended Peyton Manning’s Passing Academy when he was in Grade 10.
When asked if he thought anyone from the Vancouver camp could meet him in the Super Bowl Wilson said, “I hope so. There are some ballers in this group. So I’m hoping I’m in my 18th year or 20th year with the Seahawks and one of you jokers are playing for the (San Francisco) 49ers or something. And I’ll beat y’all. I’m not going to take it easy on you.â€
This is the first time that the 2013 Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year has taken his camp outside of the U.S. and he said that there might be another Canadian city on next year’s tour.
Jermaine Kearse was one of the Seahawks who helped out at the camp. The former University of Washington wide receiver scored one of the touchdowns in the Seahawks 43-8 win over Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.
He said that it’s a “blessing to be able to come out here†and teach the fundamentals of football to the kids.
“Everybody wants to play in the NFL, that’s everyone’s dream. So just showing them the right path to possibly get to that point (is special),†Kearse said.