Auburn’s Jeff Schumaier has seen a lot of great Seahawks moments.
Every game day for more than 15 years, Schumaier and his wife, DeDe, have transformed themselves into painted super fans, Mr. and Mrs. Seahawk, cheering from their front-row seats in the south end zone at Qwest Field.
That’s where they were last Saturday afternoon when Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch busted off a 67-yard, seismic-wave-inducing touchdown run in the fourth quarter that sealed the Seahawks’ unlikely 41-36 first-round NFL playoff victory against the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints.
“That was incredible,” Schumaier said. “(Lynch) was running down toward our end of the field. I think it was second-and-10, and you’re looking at the clock (with 3 minutes, 37 seconds left) going, ‘Come on clock, go.’ And then he broke a couple of tackles, and we’re going, ‘Oh my goodness.’ Then he breaks a couple more, and there were no flags. Oh my goodness, we couldn’t believe that was happening.
“When he scored, you would have thought we won the Super Bowl,” Schumaier said. “Everybody was hugging and screaming. That place was electric. What can you say?”
It’s those moments the Schumaiers live for.
In their everyday lives, Schumaier drives a truck, and his wife waits tables. But on Sundays during the pro football season, they become fanatical, fun-loving Mr. and Mrs. Seahawk.
The 50-something couple not only dress for the occasion, they have a house filled with team memorabilia, including several relics from the Kingdome.
The Schumaiers were friends and classmates at Auburn High School who reunited more than 20 years ago after rediscovering football and each other.
In 1998, they became man and wife, exchanging vows at the 50-yard line at Qwest Field.
‘Mama Blue’s’ inspiration
The transformation to Mr. and Mrs. Seahawk begin in the early 1990s when another super fan, Patti “Mama Blue” Hammond, inspired DeDe to begin dressing up for games.
“We met Mama Blue and she said, ‘You’re going to be the next me’ in so many words,” Schumaier said. “And that just put a thing in DeDe’s brain, and she just started creating all this. She created me from top to bottom. She makes the wigs. The wigs don’t come that way. We order the wigs, and on mine she probably spends about 10 hours coloring it.”
Schumaier said he’s worn out four or five wigs since he began donning them, including one lost in a mishap after the Seahawks’ Super Bowl loss in 2005.
“We were outside in Detroit hanging with our buddy Jerry, the Hawkfather, who has the big Seahawk Express motorhome,” Schumaier said. “He had propane heaters set up, and I bent down to pick up a quarter or something I dropped, and I melted the whole top of my wig. I was so nervous because I thought maybe we had some (media) interviews to do still. I still have that wig.”
Like many skeptical fans, Schumaier wasn’t sure how the Seahawks would fare this season. With so many changes in the organization, including a new head coach and a roster shakeup, Schumaier wasn’t expecting much.
“I would never have thought we’d be here,” he said. “I’m really proud of these guys. I didn’t really think we’d win more than five games this season with all the changes.”
Keeping the faith
Now, however, it’s all about believing in the team, something that comes naturally to Mr. and Mrs. Seahawk.
“In my mind, we’ve already played two playoff games, even though one wasn’t a playoff game,” he said. “They were both must-win games. I figure us going to Chicago (for a divisional playoff game Sunday), we have nothing to lose. Even if we were to lose, I’d be completely satisfied with the season.”
For Schumaier, last week’s upset playoff win was one of the highlights of his career as a fan.
“It was totally incredible,” he said. “I think every Hawk fan was so ready for a game like this. Other than winning the NFC Championship game in 2005, this game was right up there with that. The place was loud. It was incredible. It was so good to see the fans and the spirit. You just didn’t want to leave it.”
On Sunday, Schumaier said he and Mrs. Seahawk, along with other super fans Kilt Man, Painted Hawk and Cannonball, are going to gather at his house to watch the game rather than travel to Chicago. That way, he will have the funds to spring for a trip to Texas, should the Seahawks prevail in the NFC playoffs.
“I don’t want to put the cart before the horse, but if for some reason we were fortunate enough to win another couple of games, we’ll have some extra cash to maybe go to Dallas (for the Super Bowl),” he said.
