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 The teams share the West Coast, the NFC West division, and are
mirror images with mobile quarterbacks directing offenses with power
running backs and ferocious top-five defenses that enjoy
intimidating with bone-jarring hits and trash talking.
Personal rivalries in the NFC Championship game run from
quarterbacks Russell Wilson of Seattle and San Francisco's Colin
Kaepernick, who both carry chips on their shoulders from feeling
overlooked in the NFL Draft, down to the head coaches.
Jim Harbaugh of the Niners and Seattle's Pete Carroll have been
rivals since doing battle as college coaches in California when
Carroll was in charge of powerhouse University of Southern
California and Harbaugh turned Stanford into a power.
The Niners, who lost a heartbreaking 34-31 decision in last year's
Super Bowl to the Baltimore Ravens, are the NFL's hottest team with
eight straight wins but are on the road as a wild card team after
finishing second to Seattle (13-3) in the NFC West.
SEATTLE NOISE
Seattle have been virtually unbeatable at home with the backing of
their formidable '12th Man,' the raucous CenturyLink Field fans who
set a Guinness World Record for crowd noise in December.
Harbaugh tried to downplay his relationship with Carroll, but not
his enthusiasm for the electricity surrounding the game.
"Animosity, no. Erroneous, erroneous," Harbaugh said about any
lingering bad feelings toward his Seattle counterpart. "It's
football. It's competition. It's winning."
Former NFL quarterback Harbaugh said his team was excited about the
challenge.
"This kind of game, I was thinking of the things I would trade to be
able to compete as a player," he said. "I was thinking like a body
part. Could I do without an arm?"
The Niners have been preparing to deal with the noise factor.
"You've got to be able to communicate without being able to hear
very well," Harbaugh said. "You can simulate that somewhat in
practice. Signals, hand signals, verbal signals, body language,
reading lips, different ways."
San Francisco (12-4 in the regular season) split their two games
this season against the Seahawks, but have been blown out in their
last two games in Seattle by an aggregate 71-16.
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Niners center Jonathan Goodwin said the solution was simple.
"He just has to be louder," Goodwin said about signal caller
Kaepernick. "There's really no special tricks." POISE FACTOR
Poise rather than noise could make a key difference according to one
Seahawks player, who said the team that loses composure could suffer
damaging penalties in the ratcheted up emotion of their NFC title
clash.
"It just comes down to poise," Seahawks tight end Zach Miller told
reporters.
"You have to understand the situation and keep your emotions in
check. You want to play with fire and passion, but when the whistle
blows you have to shut it down — no matter what happens."
The Seahawks, whose defense ranked No. 1 in the NFL in both fewest
points and yards allowed, have been virtually unbeatable at home,
winning 16 of their last 17 games in Seattle.
Seattle's offense has relied heavily on running back Marshawn "The
Beast" Lynch in recent weeks. Wilson threw for only 103 yards in the
Seahawks' 23-15 win over the New Orleans Saints in the last playoff
round and is facing the league's third-ranked team in points
allowed.
Big play receiver Percy Harvin was still not cleared to practice
with Seattle on Thursday after suffering a concussion last Saturday
against New Orleans.
While San Francisco has a more dangerous crew of receivers for
Kaepernick with the return of Michael Crabtree to join Anquan Boldin
and tight end Vernon Davis, the Seahawks take a back seat to no one
on defense.
Seattle led the NFL with a plus-20 mark in turnover differential
thanks in part to a suffocating defensive secondary led by
cornerback Richard Sherman and safety Earl Thomas.
"There is no love lost, there is no love found," Sherman said about
the Seahawks' feelings about the 49ers.
"That's how I'd characterize it. It's going to be intense. It's
going to be physical. I don't know if there are going to be
handshakes after this one."
(Reporting by Larry Fine in New York; editing by Frank Pingue)
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