No, not everybody in South Dakota will be cheering for the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl this Sunday, but a lot will, and yes, some of them just want to see the New England Patriots lose. For a strong margin of South Dakotans, their preference will sway towards the Seahawks, because of rookie left guard, and fellow South Dakotan, Grey Zabel.
Zabel grew up on a farm near Pierre. In high school he played football for the Governors.
During Zabel’s tenure with Pierre TF Riggs, he was a part of three state championship teams – 2017, 2018, and 2019. It was the first three state titles of what would become a seven-in-a-row run by the Gov’s. As a senior, Zabel was named the outstanding lineman of the 11AA state championship game.
After high school, he went on to play football for North Dakota State University. During his time with NDSU, the Bison won two DI FCS National Championships. Zabel was highly scouted coming out of college, which resulted in him going No. 18 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft to the Seattle Seahawks.
Including the post-season, Zabel has started 19 games this season in the NFL. On Sunday, in the Super Bowl, it’ll be start number 20.
During the media sessions with players this week, Zabel went to the podium where he discussed growing up in South Dakota, being a farm kid, and how he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I think farming and football have a lot of common. You put in work all offseason to grow and then at the end of the year you finally get to play football and play games and stuff,” explained Zabel. “Same way with farming, there’s nothing better than the combine and getting to see your results of the last year.”
As an offensive lineman, you’re likely not going to see Zabel scoring a touchdown on Sunday (although that would be awesome), but his role has played a huge role in Seattle’s success all year. The Seahawks have one of the most cohesive offensive line units in the league, and it shows. Zabel credited his work ethic to his upbringing.
“The tough jobs on the farm of pulling weeds, picking rocks, and sweeping out the shed have a lot of aspects of football, the tough, dirty jobs need to be done,” he said with a smile. “Playing offensive line is a huge part of that as well.”
After the Super Bowl this Sunday, and as the offseason officially begins for the Seattle Seahawks, Zabel plans to head back to South Dakota to spend time on the farm and catching up with friends in the area.
“I have a lot of people cheering for me and that’s super cool, super special. I’m excited to get back and kind of see everybody after being gone for this entire football season,” he said. “A lot of text messages, a lot of phone calls checking in, and I’m just blessed to have the community I was raised in and the support that I’ve gotten. Not just this past week, but the entire season and my entire sports career.”
Zabel won multiple state championships in high school, two national championships in college, and now as a rookie has a chance to reach the top of the mountain as a pro.
Last year, Dallas Goedert, another South Dakota who plays tight end in the NFL, won the Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Super Bowl 60 between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots will kick off at 5:30 pm CT this Sunday on NBC.
