Rivalries

Most recently, the Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers have begun to develop a rivalry, starting with the 49ers hiring of coach Jim Harbaugh for the 2011 NFL season. Harbaugh had coached against Seahawks coach Pete Carroll before in college at Stanford and Southern California, respectively. The 49ers won the first contest between the coaches at the NFL level, then proceeded to win a close game at CenturyLink Field to eliminate the Seahawks from playoff contention. 2012 brought a new season and another Seahawks loss, week 7 on NFL Network's Thursday Night Football at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, as they dropped a 13–6 game where the offense failed to score a touchdown and 49ers quarterback Alex Smith did just enough to survive. Week 16 brought a fever anxiety as the Seahawks and 49ers prepared to face off in primetime on NBC Sunday Night Football. The Seahawks entered the game at 9–5, with back-to-back blowouts in which the team scored more than 50 points in games against the Buffalo Bills and Arizona Cardinals. Quickly, the Seahawks imposed their will with a Marshawn Lynch 24-yard touchdown run, two of quarterback Russell Wilson's touchdown passes and a blocked field goal return had the Seahawks lead at halftime 28–6. The Seahawks continued in the second half, eventually winning 42–13 capped off by Seahawks strong safety Kam Chancellor's hit on former 49ers tight end Vernon Davis. The 49ers, however, won the following week, locking up the division title for the second consecutive season. Since rejoining the NFC West, the Seahawks lead the series 18–15 versus the 49ers, including playoffs. Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers lost their first 2013 season matchup against their NFC West rivals 29–3, with the help of Marshawn Lynch's three touchdowns, with the fans setting a new Guinness World Record for the loudest crowd roar at 136.6 dB.^[27] However, the Seahawks were defeated 19–17 in their second 2013 game with the 49ers at Candlestick Park. This was largely due to a late game 51-yard run by Frank Gore. The Seahawks had not won in San Francisco since 2008 until defeating the 49ers in convincing 19–3 fashion on Thanksgiving Day in 2014. In the 2013 NFC Championship Game, the Seahawks defeated the 49ers 23 to 17,^[28] thanks to Malcolm Smith's interception, which was tipped by Richard Sherman. This clinched the Seahawks' berth into Super Bowl XLVIII.