PHOENIX, Ariz. — Think of the great NFL coaches over the last half century, the Lombardis, Shulas, Nolls, even the Belichicks, because no matter what we think of Bill, he is part of this category and a much rarer category — a winner in back-to-back Super Bowls.

Now consider adding the name of Pete Carroll to that list. Silly, you suggest, because Carroll, a product of California’s fantasy-land Marin County, a guy whose easy-going ways when he coached the Jets were derided as “the good ship Lollipop?”

Well, if Carroll’s Seattle Seahawks beat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, he would join those four men, and two others — Jimmy Johnson and Mike Shanahan — as the coach of teams which won back-to-back Super Bowls.

Maybe that doesn’t get you voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but it’s a special achievement, and in this case one, which would give some gravitas to a career that because Carroll came from California and not the tough, chilled Midwest and East has not always been appreciated.

Dropped by the Jets, ousted by the Patriots — and yes, the revenge motive exists, although it’s not the driving force for Carroll. The accidental coach at USC, where he won a couple of national titles. Then, a return to the NFL, with the Seahawks.

Where he could become part of history, with a victory. Although as most people in sports contend (not that we believe them), that’s the furthest thing from his mind.

“It’s not something — I’m aware there’s some numbers and all of that, but specifically, no. I don’t care about that. It’s not a big deal to me,” Carroll said.

Whether we believe him or not, believe that at age 63, Pete Carroll and the franchise he’s coached for a five seasons are at the summit of the game. He understands what is required — a top defense and an elite quarterback.

There’s an intellectual side to the San Francisco-born Carroll. According to an Austin Murphy article in Sports Illustrated some years ago, Carroll not only could discuss Buddhist meditation but read a book on the subject which was on his dashboard while driving from Stockton where he was attending University of Pacific.

There’s a nasty side to Carroll. He was as safety at UOP, which subsequently dropped football, and a former teammate recalls him as a “headhunter.” Seattle’s “Legion of Boom,” defensive backfield can only bring satisfaction. As it brings wins.

Been there, done that. And ready to do it again.

“There are a lot of similarities,” he answered when asked about trying to add to Super Bowls to his two college championships.

“It’s really difficult to get there the first time and then if you’ve done it like you like to, you kind of pave the way for the next time. The kind of issues, the distractions, the conversations, kind of the dialogue, is very similar in coming back around. As far as coming back and to compare how it feels and all that stuff, I’m thrilled about the opportunity.”

Especially after the Seahawks started the 2014 season with three losses their first six games. The presumption was that as so many teams do the season after a Super Bowl victory, Seattle has destined to plummet. Wrong presumption.

“This is very difficult to get to this position and of course we want to make the very most of it,” said Carroll, “but we had been planning to do this for some time in hopes that we could.

“We’re trying to take it in stride, so we can do it well and handle it well. We’ll find out how the game turns out, but to this point, to rally like our team did during the early part of the year and then hang on and in the middle of the year kind of take off, I think it’s a real statement that we had a bunch of guys that were determined to get this.”

They got to it. Carroll could be getting a chance to gloat. Again.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft is the man who fired Carroll after the 1999 season. His team is the foe. Yes, Pete and Pats have met previously but not in such a momentous game.

“Robert has been very gracious throughout the time,” Carroll said about his dealings with Kraft since being dropped by New England. “I’ve tried to return that to him.”

What he doesn’t want to return is the Lombardi Trophy. He keeps it if Seattle wins a second straight Super Bowl. Carroll’s good ship lollipop has proven to be a very sea-worthy vessel.