Sam Adams came to Seattle in a trade to the Seahawks and while he was here he set out to build a minor league football team with one purpose in mind:  CHAMPIONSHIP.  He did just that in three short years.  Assembling the best athletes and coaches and sparing no expense, Sam built his team and also his resume serving as commissioner of the North American Football League  (NAFL) while also coaching until signing an August tender to join the Oakland Raiders.  Sidney Orange would tie a league record with four rushing touchdowns against the Spokane Nightmare while accumulating 137 yards on 18 carries.  In their first season, the Hawks made it to the Northwest Football League (NWFL) playoffs only to be ousted by the Multnomah County Buccaneers 33-30 on Eastside's turf.  Brad Collins would be named the NWFL Offensive Player of the Year for his quarterbacking in 2002.  Collins would later enter the coaching ranks with the Skagit Valley Lightning in 2007 and 2008.  Seattle Times June 2, 2002

The following year, they reached the NWFL playoffs, this time taking the title away from the King County Jaguars. Sam's Hawks would eventually be defeated by the Kane County Eagles in Orlando, FL in the NAFL championship game to end 2003.  The Minor League Football News (MLFN) would name the Hawks the AAA West Comeback Team of the Year and Coach Ken Austin the AAA West Coach of the Year in leading Eastside to the Florida title game.  Eight Hawks would be named to the NWFL 1st Team All-League list while a total of 25 players would be named to the All-League teams including honorable mentions.  New quarterback Lance Westendorf came over from leading the Puget Sound Jets to the 2002 National Championship along with a large contingent of Jets that included repeat-award winners Milton Myers, Andre Edwards, Aaron Wardrip, Rod Wilson, Terrance Ivory, Pat Gilbert and many others.

In 2004 Adams and the Hawks would not be denied.  Nesby Glasgow, a 14-year NFL veteran would be elevated to Head Coach for 2004 after serving as an assistant the previous two under Ken Austin who retired briefly before surfacing with the West Sound Saints as Director of Operations.  Accumulating more talent from around the NWFL and abroad, Eastside was virtually unstoppable with 14 points being the closest anyone would get to upsetting the Northwest's version of a "Dream Team".  The 2004 Hawks would average 43.9 points per game while setting Northwest League records for points scored in a season (703) and in a game (99) while recording eight shut outs. Jose Moreno set a league record with 13 PAT kicks during the record-setting 99-0 win over the Oregon Panthers.  From June through August, Eastside outscored opponents 416-38.  Racing through the NAFL playoffs, Eastside dismantled the Central Penn Piranah to win the NAFL Championship in Orlando, FL.   The American Football Association would declare the Hawks as their National Football Champions and join the previous 24 title holders on the Arkush Cup.  Quarterback Chris Dixon was named the championship game MVP after passing for 281 yards and five touchdowns.  E.J. Ash accounted for 153 yards and two touchdowns, Milton Myers capped scoring with a 100-yard INT return.

Eleven Hawks would be named to the All-NWFL 1st Team list as the post-season honors were a near sweep as Jerimiah Pharms won the defensive rookie of the year honors, EJ Ash won overall player of the year honors while setting a then-regional record 1,673 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns.  For the second time in three years a Hawks quarterback won offensive rookie of the year as Chris Dixon became the third new QB in three years following Lance Westendorf and Brad Collins.  Twenty-three members of the team would earn NWFL honors following the 2004 season.

Chris Dixon had played the 2003 season with the Oakland Vipers of the Golden State league following his collegiate career ending at Humboldt State. After leading the Hawks to the 2004 American Football Association National Championship amassing over 2,900-yards passing and 46 total touchdowns on the season, Chris went on to become one of the most highly decorated quarterbacks in indoor league history.  A 8-time United Bowl Champion, 4-time United Bowl MVP, 3-time Indoor Football League MVP, 4-time Indoor Football League Offensive Player of the Year, and throwing for over 500 career touchdowns, Dixon was inducted into the Indoor Football League Hall of Fame in 2015.  Dixon's playing career extending into 2017, 2019 and 2023 with the Arizona Rattlers, while also embarking on a coaching career in Montana from 2006-2020 and in Arizona beginning in 2022.

QB Chris Dixon     /    Coach Chris Dixon

That would be all for the NWFL version of the Hawks as Sam had set his sights on the indoor game in October of 2004 creating the Everett Hawks for the National Indoor Football League (NIFL) with some key players while returning the rest of the Eastside Hawk players back to the NWFL or wherever else they may have come from.  Adams, Glasgow and Jay Atwood would lead the Everett Hawks in 2005 as owner, president and head coach respectively.  Atwood had been the coach of the Multnomah County Buccaneers in Portland during the 2000 and 2001 seasons.  The Hawks would last through the 2007 season before shutting down as members of the Arena Football League 2 after three seasons.

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