So much has happened in the 15 years since, but 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman and Seahawks coach Pete Carroll still remember the day that they first met in 2004.



Sherman was a junior at Compton’s Dominguez High School and Carroll was the head coach at powerhouse USC, where Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush were surging to an undefeated season and national title.



“He wanted me to be a corner coming out of high school,” Sherman said of Carroll on Friday. “I told him no. You know, coming out of high school, you want to play receiver, receiver, receiver. I wanted the ball. But he wanted me to play corner for USC. He offered me a scholarship to play corner and I said no. That’s when USC was on top of the world, and Pete Carroll coming to Compton was not an everyday occurrence.”



So Sherman went to Stanford instead, where he ended up playing for Jim Harbaugh, who’d later become the 49ers coach, of course. And Sherman did...