Jerimiah Adkins is still flying.
Adkins was one of six 12s who Delta Airlines flew to Seattle for the Seahawks' divisional playoff game against the Carolina Panthers at CenturyLink Field on Saturday night. He's originally from Marysville, but now stationed at Fort Campbell in Kentucky as a staff sergeant in the Army.
Atkins flew to Seattle on Friday morning, after working a night shift.
"We didn't even get any work done," he said. "All we did was talk about this. Everybody was like, 'No way.' So I kept showing them the email."
And what he is about to experience is a flight of fantasy that has become a reality for the lifelong Seahawks fan.
"I'm still like, 'Are you kidding me?' " said Adkins, whose only other game at CenturyLink Field was during the 2011 preseason. "I'm really looking forward to it."
Also among the 68,000 strong 12s on hand for the Seahawks' playoff opener are a blue-and-green faced father and daughter from Puyallup and a high school teacher from Everett who hasn't liked a player as much as she likes Marshawn Lynch since Walter Payton.
Jerimiah Adkins
Age: 35
From: Marysville
Accompanied by: his friend, Lakey Malan
Fan since: "Forever."
Favorite all-time Seahawk: Marshawn Lynch. "I like his work ethic and the fact that he's not about the publicity. He does his job and he does what he loves to do," said Adkins, who was wearing a Lynch T-shirt. "He's not about, 'Hey, you did a good job.' Or, 'Hey, look what I'm doing.' That's what I like about him."
Favorite current Seahawk: Marshawn Lynch Favorite moment from Super Bowl XLVIII: "I was in Afghanistan and I watched it on a six-inch TV. I locked my office and I was crying the whole time."
Favorite moment in franchise history other than the Super Bowl: "The first time we made the Super Bowl (in 2005). I was in Korean for that one."
Moment most looking forward to in the playoffs: "If we see Dallas again, beating Dallas' (butt). I want to see them get shutout because they beat us."
Curt McClements
Age: 52
From: Puyallup
Accompanied by: his daughter, Sydney
Fan since: "Forever."
Favorite all-time Seahawk: Russell Wilson. "He's a great role model and awesome athlete."
Favorite current Seahawk: Russell Wilson. Favorite moment from Super Bowl XLVIII: "The safety right off the bat," he said of the errant snap to Peyton Manning on the first play of the game. "It just gave us huge momentum right off the get-go."
Favorite moment in franchise history other than the Super Bowl: "I attended the first playoff game in '83," he said of the 31-7 wild-card victory over the Denver Broncos on Christmas Eve.
Moment most looking forward to in the playoffs: "Just winning today. I was going to say next week, but let's stick with today."
Melissa Webster
Age: 52
From: Everett
Accompanied by: Kelly Rogers, who teaches with Webster at Cascade High school and is hosting two teachers from Australia – Mel McKechnie and Cathy Rolfe.
Fan since: "Six years."
Favorite all-time Seahawk: Marshawn Lynch. "He just gets the job done and I don't think he's seeking the limelight like some of the others," she said of the Seahawks' leading rusher. Webster grew up in Chicago, and grew up a Walter Payton fan. "I haven't been in love with a player since Walter Payton as much as I am with Marshawn Lynch."
Favorite current Seahawk: Marshawn Lynch. Favorite moment from Super Bowl XLVIII: "Percy Harvin's kickoff return," she said of Harvin returning the second-half kickoff for a touchdown. "I felt we had in the first quarter, confirmed it in the second quarter and when he did that, that's when I knew we had it."
Favorite moment in franchise history other than the Super Bowl: "Marshawn Lynch's run," she said of Lynch's electrifying Beast Quake run for a touchdown in the 2010 wild-card victory over the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints.
Moment most looking forward to in the playoffs: "I'm looking forward to facing Green Bay in our house."
