By Joe Davison

If you have watched a Seahawks football game, chances are you have heard the phrase “12th Man” during broadcast.  This phrase is typically used to describe the impact of the home fans—each team has eleven players on the field and the fans are thought to fill the role of the 12^th man to give the home team advantage.  Although it is used by many football teams, the saying is most commonly associated with the Seattle Seahawks and Texas A&M University’s football team.

The use of the “12th Man” phrase by both the Seahawks and Texas A&M goes back decades.  In 1984, the Seahawks retired the number 12 in honor of its famously dedicated fans. In 2003, the Seahawks installed a flagpole in the south end zone of CenturyLink Field, and began a tradition of raising a flag with the number 12 on it to honor their fans.   Continue reading →