Pete Carroll will lead his Seattle Seahawks against Clay Matthews and the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game on Sunday.
Matthews, one of Carroll’s former USC players, is also one of his biggest coaching regrets. Speaking on what he calls “one of the great mistakes” of his coaching career, Carroll had this to say (via NFL.com).
Maybe because of the way he came up, it took him a long time to develop, and didn’t recognize the great heart that he had, and unbelievable competitiveness and the great savvy that he demonstrates now. It’s really one of my big misses. I should have figured that out a lot sooner than I did. He made the rest of it history and been an extraordinary player ever since.
Matthews was a late bloomer,who gained more than 50 pounds between high school and his junior year at USC. While Carroll refers to Matthews as one of his best special teams players in college, the Pro Bowler didn’t actually start at linebacker until his senior year.
Should Matthews and the Packers defeat the Seahawks this weekend, Carroll will be re-thinking his decision-making process for some time to come.
Photo: ESPN