Courtesy photo
Andrew Janocko holds the Lombardi Trophy in the Seattle Seahawks’ locker room.
Just a few days after coaching in the biggest game that football has to offer, Andrew Janocko thought back to the sacrifices that his parents made while he grew up at Clearfield.
When he was a senior in high school, his mother, Trina, drove Andrew to Pittsburgh to participate in 7-on-7 drills with his future teammates at Pitt. The two woke up at 3:30 a.m. to get to the campus in Oakland. Trina sat in a coffee shop while Andrew was with the football team at Pitt, and she even got Andrew back to Clearfield in time for baseball practice that day.
Tim and Trina Janocko had seats in the fourth row in the corner of the end zone at Levi’s Stadium to watch their son coach in a Super Bowl as the quarterbacks coach for the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks beat the New England Patriots, 29-13, to get Andrew a Super Bowl ring.
Janocko’s success with Seattle earned him an interview with the Las Vegas Raiders for their offensive coordinator position, and Sunday — according to a report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter — he accepted the promotion and will follow fellow Seattle coach Klint Kubiak to Vegas.
Just minutes after the Super Bowl, Andrew climbed up to the stands to get a picture with his parents.
“To get to share that moment with them was really special,” Andrew said. “All that stuff, you’re really taken aback by how much they sacrificed for me throughout my life. Them getting to be there for that game and that trophy — it means everything to me.”
Tim Janocko knows a thing or two about coaching in big games. He was the head coach at Clearfield for 37 seasons and retired after the 2022 season with 307 wins. But on this specific occasion, Tim had the same nerves that many Seahawk fans had.
“It’s really no comparison,” Tim said. “You plan out in your mind things you would do. You watch it on television, and when you’re there, it doesn’t look real.
“I’m just so proud of him. It’s hard to put into words, honestly.”
It’s been a little more than a week since winning the Lombardi Trophy, but there hasn’t been much time for Andrew to soak in the achievement.
“From the time when the game ended until the parade, it’s been a blur,” Andrew said. “It’s a lot of fun. It’s been cool to enjoy. It’s pretty surreal.”
In a season where there didn’t seem to be a dominant team in the NFL, Andrew said he never allowed himself to think that the Seahawks could be good enough to win the Super Bowl. There was always only focus on winning the next game.
It’s something he’s grown accustomed to over a 13-year career in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, the Seahawks and now the Las Vegas Raiders. He also spent a couple years in the college game with Rutgers and Mercyhurst.
“You’re really just thinking about improving,” Andrew said. “You really try not to put the cart before the horse. You just want to win the next one, and the next one, and the next one. It’s about getting in (the playoffs). It’s about winning the division, getting the No. 1 seed, and then it was just survive and advance.”
Tim and Trina Janocko had been on the road for the whole playoff run and were excited to get back to Clearfield. But Tim also acknowledged the long run for Andrew’s first championship.
“It’s a rough business. The NFL is not for the faint of heart,” Tim said. “You go through different places, and a lot of times your fate isn’t under your control. Every stop you’re at, you learn something.”
Many players and coaches usually say there isn’t a lot of sleep the night before a Super Bowl. That wasn’t the case for Andrew. He did his normal Saturday night routine, and he had his family with him. His wife, Natalie, was with other Seahawks coaches’ wives in the hotel lobby, while Andrew prepared for the biggest game of his life.
“It was just a time to exhale and I ended up having a great night’s sleep, which was completely surprising,” Janocko said with a laugh.
Janocko also said he is still answering text messages from friends and family after the Super Bowl. He’s on social media, but doesn’t check it often and said he has to check out everything at some point.
“It’s just really fun to see the area come together for something like this,” Janocko said.
