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When asked about his favorite NFL team growing up, New England Patriots fullback Jack Westover, ’22, couldn’t help but laugh and look down shyly while meeting with the Super Bowl media this week. The Bellevue native and University of Washington alumnus had to admit he grew up cheering for the Seattle Seahawks.

Westover had an nontraditional start to the sport. Due to several injuries, he recalls playing only two games in his entire high school football career. But that did not stop his determination to play.

Westover walked on at the UW as a freshman after attending a Washington summer football camp where the coaches spotted his athleticism and size. The tight end eventually earned a scholarship for on-field performance—something his teammates recall him being characteristically humble about. He says that same humility has carried into his professional career.

“There’s no words to describe how lucky I am,” Westover says. “Starting out as a walk-on, earning a scholarship, playing in a national championship at the UW, and then being able to play on this stage—it’s wild.”

As a tight end at the UW, Westover followed a long line of successful players from the program. Still, he carved out his own place among Huskies who have gone on to the NFL.

“Jack was cut from the same cloth as the greats,” says Mason Wheeler, ’23, a former UW teammate. “He’s part of a brotherhood of great human beings who are also great football players, and I think that’s exactly what the Patriots saw in him.”

Westover became close with fellow walk-ons, including linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio, ’22, now with the Cleveland Browns. Ulofoshio recalled the two exploring Seattle together during their college days. He says the pressure was higher for walk-ons, who were competing daily for scholarships.

“I remember us going to Chipotle and getting double burritos because we had to gain weight,” Ulofoshio says, laughing. “We were just shoveling them down. We would never do that today.”

Westover signed onto the Seahawks’ practice squad as an undrafted free agent in 2024 before being released after the summer. Only a few months later, he signed onto the practice squad with the Patriots and was elevated to the active roster during week 12 of that season.

Westover’s cohort of UW football alumni remains close. One afternoon, they noticed the Patriots running a play familiar from their days at Husky Stadium. The group erupted, knowing Westover was in position to execute it. And execute it he did—Wheeler recalls all of the teammates rejoicing over text about their old teammate’s successful play.

When Seattle clinched its Super Bowl berth just hours after New England, Westover says he couldn’t help but laugh, knowing friends back home would be rooting against his team. But even with the temporarily divided loyalties in mind, he’s grateful for the support from home.

“It sounds cliche, but that’s what made us great—how close we were as a team,” Westover says. “We’re still talking, still in group chats and talking on the phone.”

For Westover, Sunday is simply the latest step. His walk-on mindset has carried him to the biggest stage of his career, with friends back home watching closely no matter the outcome.