Seahawks
Notebook: Florida natives have eye on home

By Greg Bishop
Seattle Times staff reporter

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KIRKLAND — Heath Evans didn't worry so much about the family homes. His dad built both of them, so he knew they would withstand the 105 mph winds.

He was worried about his family in West Palm Beach, Fla. They were without power for a week, eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and bracing for three hurricanes that have swept through or near Florida in succession.

For that reason, the six Seahawks from Florida have been thinking about their home state a lot lately. And not just because they're playing in Tampa Bay on Sunday.

"I'm human," Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said, "so I've been watching. Those poor people down there have been hit pretty hard. Everybody is watching it."

He paused, then added, half-joking or so it seemed: "I'm perfectly willing to invite Tampa to come up here and play."

Yesterday, it looked like the latest Florida storm, Hurricane Ivan, wasn't going to affect the Seahawks' travel or game plans this week. But the Seahawks might see some of the damage when they travel there this weekend.

Homes in Tampa Bay were evacuated during Hurricane Charley. Power went out during Hurricane Frances, costing the Buccaneers a day of practice, causing minor damage to their practice facility and flooding some areas of town.

This brought about a humorous night for Tampa Bay Devil Rays third baseman Aubrey Huff, who tried to drive to the airport to fly to New York, got stuck on a flooded road and had to slog home by foot.

And then came Ivan, the latest storm, with the strength of Charley and the size of Frances, and it appeared to be heading straight for Tampa Bay this week. Then it veered toward the Gulf of Mexico, alleviating concerns about this week's games.

Last weekend, two football games were moved. In college, Miami and Florida State played on Friday instead of the previous Monday. In the NFL, Miami and Tennessee played on Saturday instead of Sunday.
 
Darrell Jackson is a Tampa native who owns a home in the city, but he said he isn't worried.

"That's what you have insurance for, you know," he said.

With family "all over" Florida, he is keeping an eye on the weather. Same as the other Seahawks from that state — those who have been through hurricanes or storms, those who know the damage they can cause.

"With these last three, we've been lucky," said safety Marquand Manuel, a Miami native.

Lined up

Of all of the positives Holmgren saw defensively on Sunday, the line might have been the most impressive. It dropped Saints quarterback Aaron Brooks two times, pressured him many other times, controlled the line of scrimmage and held Deuce McAllister to 57 yards rushing.

"We've got a lot of athletic, strong-hearted guys on the line," end Chike Okeafor said. "We can rotate everybody in real well, so that we're all fresh and flying around, making plays, causing disruptions."

Asked about his sack, Okeafor looked down at his hands. "Hey, man," he said, "these just do it all by themselves sometimes. It's all leverage and physics."

Notes

• New starting linebackers Orlando Huff and Isaiah Kacyvenski each played 39 snaps, Holmgren said, up from what the Seahawks expected. "Given the fact that it was their first extensive playing time, and Kaz hasn't played in a while, I couldn't be more pleased," Holmgren said. "Now, if I compliment them too much, they'll look at me like something's wrong with me. We've got a lot of work to do. We've still got a lot of work to do."

• First-round draft pick Marcus Tubbs (hamstring) was inactive Sunday. Holmgren said Tubbs probably could have played if he had to, and that "my feeling is we'll have him ready to go this week."

• Tackle Wayne Hunter also returns this week after a one-game suspension.

• Other than Shaun Alexander (bruised knee), Holmgren termed the team's health following the Saints game "pretty good."

• Less than 2,000 tickets remain for the Seahawks' first two home games, against San Francisco and St. Louis. Call 888-NFL-HAWK to purchase tickets.