It’s hard to put the 49ers and Seattle Seahawks rivalry into words.
But that wasn’t the case for Seahawks defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt, who didn’t hesitate with his one-word summary of the rivalry.
“Slugfest. It’s a slugfest,” Hurtt said on Thursday before the reporter could finish his question. “Both teams love to run the football. Both teams play hard, fly around and want to hit you. It’s going to be like that for 60 minutes and they’re always super competitive games. I enjoy these ones, playing against them. A lot of respect for the organization and what they do.”
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Hurtt has witnessed the rivalry up close for several years now, but Sunday’s showdown between the two teams at Levi’s Stadium will be his first as Seattle’s defensive coordinator.
He addressed some of the things he expects from Kyle Shanahan’s team on Sunday.
“Old school option football, it forces you to be really, really disciplined,” Hurtt said. “But the one thing about San Francisco is they’re a physical football team. So not only do you have to match the schematic part of it and be responsible for your job in the run game, but also you have to match the physicality. I always love playing the Niners for that reason. It’s a physical matchup.”
The storied rivalry goes back to 2002 but really increased dramatically in the early 2010s.
San Francisco 49ers
When former USC coach Pete Carroll and former Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh took their talents to the NFL level, the rivalry intensified from the Pac-12 to the NFC West.
Both turned their teams into respected franchises with the additions of new QBs Russell Wilson (2012 NFL Draft) and Colin Kaepernick (2011 NFL Draft).
From 2010 to 2014, either the Seahawks or the 49ers won the NFC West championship.
And it's hard to forget that 2013 NFC Championship Game in Seattle that cost the 49ers a trip to Super Bowl XLVIII and turned out to be the most monumental game in their shared history.
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But the past is the past.
Fast-forward to present day where things look very different and a Rusell Wilson-less Seahawks squad was the only NFC West team to walk out of Week 1 win a win.
Still, the intensity creeping into Levi's Stadium can be felt from afar.
The "slugfest" will continue on Sunday as the 49ers will look to give the Seahawks their first loss of the season. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.