SEATTLE — Before the NFL would come to Seattle, the city needed a building large enough to house it.

Construction on the Kingdome started in 1972, and in 1974 the league granted the franchise to a group of Seattle businessmen, with the Nordstrom family as the majority stockholders.

Next, they had to pick a name. A contest was held that received over 20,000 entries, with 1,741 different suggestions.

Narrowed down to seven, the final choices were the Cascades, Evergreens, Mariners, Olympics, Pioneers, Sockeyes, and the Seahawks.

Armed with only a name but no coach or players, the team sold 24,000 tickets the first day, and a short time later, all 59,000 were gone.

Next came the coach - management wanted someone from a winning organization who would have the patience to handle a young te

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