Seahawks' Pete Carroll remembers high school classmate Robin Williams

At Redwood High in Larkspur, Ca., Pete Carroll was an elite football player despite the fact that he was so light, he required a doctor's clearance to play the

Doug Farrar | Aug 12, 2014

Seahawks' Pete Carroll remembers high school classmate Robin Williams /

At Redwood High in Larkspur, Ca., Pete Carroll was an elite football player despite the fact that he was so light, he required a doctor's clearance to play the game. Carroll starred as a quarterback, receiver and defensive back, and he was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 2009. Long before he became an assistant and head coach of renown, Carroll was an athlete -- and a good one.

At Redwood High in Larkspur, Ca., Carroll's classmate, Robin Williams, was heavily involved in the drama department, and was voted "Funniest" and "Most Likely Not to Succeed." Well, that second vote was obviously a canard. Long before he was one of the most celebrated, successful and beloved comedians and actors of his day, Williams showed great potential in the dramatic arts.

Williams and Carroll graduated in the same year, and went their separate ways -- Carroll to a long and fruitful career in football, Williams as a defining force in his own mediums. On Monday, 63-year-old Williams committed suicide, leaving the world shocked and saddened. While Carroll had his own things to deal with -- ramping his team into shape following the first Super Bowl win in franchise history -- he took a moment when asked by the media to reflect on the star he went to high school with.

"Oh, it’s a tremendous loss," Carroll said after Monday's training camp practice. "We were not real close. We were in the same graduating class and all that. But everybody knew that he was there. It’s a huge loss. What an extraordinary personality and character. He’s been so constantly great for so long. This is a terrible loss for everybody that loved him so much. It’s really a hard day, hard day."

Both men had gone though their share of rough times, though Williams' were obviously more serious. Williams had dealt with depression and substance abuse issues, and for whatever reasons, he could not shake those demons.

Two young men in one high school. Both took their paths to the very pinnacles of their professions. One survived the ride; one did not. That's how random and confusing life -- and success -- can be.

Published Aug 12, 2014

DOUG FARRAR

SI.com contributing NFL writer and Seattle resident Doug Farrar started writing about football locally in 2002, and became Football Outsiders' West Coast NFL guy in 2006. He was fascinated by FO's idea to combine Bill James with Dr. Z, and wrote for the site for six years. He wrote a game-tape column called "Cover-2" for a number of years, and contributed to six editions of "Pro Football Prospectus" and the "Football Outsiders Almanac." In 2009, Doug was invited to join Yahoo Sports' NFL team, and covered Senior Bowls, scouting combines, Super Bowls, and all sorts of other things for Yahoo Sports and the Shutdown Corner blog through June, 2013. Doug received the proverbial offer he couldn't refuse from SI.com in 2013, and that was that. Doug has also written for the Seattle Times, the Washington Post, the New York Sun, FOX Sports, ESPN.com, and ESPN The Magazine. He also makes regular appearances on several local and national radio shows, and has hosted several podcasts over the years. He counts Dan Jenkins, Thomas Boswell, Frank Deford, Ralph Wiley, Peter King, and Bill Simmons as the writers who made him want to do this for a living. In his rare off-time, Doug can be found reading, hiking, working out, searching for new Hendrix, Who, and MC5 bootlegs, and wondering if the Mariners will ever be good again.