Why Macdonald’s reportedly hiring No. Illinois head coach as Seahawks RBs coach
Mike Macdonald is bringing more of his guys to his Super Bowl-champion team.
The Seahawks are hiring Northern Illinois University head coach Thomas Hammock as Seattle’s new running backs coach with an additional title of senior offensive assistant. ESPN college football writer Pete Thamel was the first to report the hiring of the 44-year-old Hammock on Wednesday morning and said Hammock chose Macdonald’s Seahawks to become the league’s highest-paid running backs coach “amid multiple NFL opportunities.”
That figures.
Macdonald and Hammock coached together for five years with the Baltimore Ravens. That was from 2014 to ‘18 when Hammock was the Ravens running backs coach. Macdonald, 38, was in his first years as an NFL assistant then, from Ravens coaching intern (’14), defensive assistant (2015–‘16), defensive backs coach (’17) and linebackers coach (’18).
Hammock replaces Kennedy Polamalu. Polamalu left the Seahawks in early December, during the team’s run up to the Super Bowl. He took a leave of absence for unspecified, personal reasons.
Macdonald likely loved seeing this from Hammock last fall: During this past Northern Illinois season, Hammock spoke passionately about what’s being lost amid all the money chasing going on in college football through Name, Image and Likeness and the transfer portal.
“I enjoyed my college experience. I didn’t get one dime,” Hammock said last fall. “But the lessons I learned was more valuable than any money you could ever pay me. I appreciate that, because that is long term.
“People are losing the fact that this (money) is short term. I coached in the National Football League for five years. Five years, right? Don’t lose focus of the long term. Get your degree. Learn valuable lessons that’s going to help you in a long term of your life. That’s the whole purpose. This is a transition from being a kid to a grown-up. I hope people don’t lose focus of that.
“Everybody is talking about everything but what is the most important thing about going to college. Because if you are going to college to go get a couple dollars you might as well go get a job. This is too hard to go get a couple dollars. Learn the lessons that you need to learn to be successful in life, for the next 40, 50 years of your life.
“I would do it again for free. For free. Because of the things I learned ... not because of what somebody gave me. Parents need to learn that lesson, too. Stop trying to live through your kids...
“I don’t care about no NIL, no revenue share; I could care less. You need to learn things in college to get you prepared for life to be a father, a husband, to work, everything else.
“Those are the most important things. That’s what people are missing, in my opinion. Just my opinion.”
This story was originally published February 18, 2026 at 7:42 AM with the headline "Why Macdonald’s reportedly hiring No. Illinois head coach as Seahawks RBs coach."
