An unqualified success as a college coach, Pete Carroll still has plenty to prove in the NFL.
Carroll will get his first shot when his Seattle Seahawks host the San Francisco 49ers in their season opener on Sunday.
Leaving behind a job at Southern California where he won two national championships and seven Pac-10 titles in 10 seasons, Carroll spurned several offers from NFL teams over the years before settling with the Seahawks and getting control over personnel. He put that control to good use this summer, overturning the roster and bringing back fewer players from last season than any other team in the league.
The young group probably won’t do much to improve Carroll’s overall record as an NFL coach - he went 6-10 in 1994 with the New York Jets and 27-21 from 1997-99 with the New England Patriots - but he is attempting to build the framework for a future contender in Seattle.
First-round picks Russell Okung and Earl Thomas should figure prominently this season and 2009 top pick Aaron Curry will be developed as a pass rusher.
One of the lone veterans remaining is quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, who has had a tough time remaining healthy the past few seasons. The 35-year-old threw a career-high 17 interceptions in 2009 while dealing with broken ribs and various other ailments. Okung, who was drafted to protect Hasselbeck at left tackle, will miss the season opener with a high ankle sprain.
The 49ers come into the 2010 campaign with higher expectations than usual for a club that has not had a winning season since 2002. A trendy pick to win the division with Seattle and the St. Louis Rams rebuilding and the Arizona Cardinals taking a step back, San Francisco will go as far as quarterback Alex Smith will take them.
A former No. 1 overall pick, Smith is a career 56.3 percent passer with a 69.2 rating and 37 touchdowns against 43 interceptions in sporadic playing time over the last five seasons.
The clear starter entering 2010, Smith has the full support of coach Mike Singletary and a plethora of options on offense, including tight end Vernon Davis, receiver Michael Crabtree and running back Frank Gore, who is one of only three players in the NFL to rush for over 1,000 yards in each of the last four seasons.
Gore had one of his best games in 2009 against Seattle in September, rushing for 207 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the 49ers’ 23-10 home win.
But where San Francisco really shines is on defense. Star linebacker Patrick Willis leads a unit that allowed just 97 yards per game on the ground last season. Willis should be familiar to Hasselbeck, as he was responsible for breaking the quarterback’s ribs in that September matchup last season.
Hasselbeck got some revenge when the teams met again in December, completing 25-of-34 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Seahawks to a 20-17 win.