Zack Baun, back in his Wisconsin hometown after the Super Bowl, reflects on the Eagles as ‘the right opportunity’

The linebacker was celebrated in West Bend, Wis., and deep in Packers country, he showed his Eagles pride.

Eagles linebacker Zack Baun runs down South Broad Street giving high fives to fans during the Super Bowl victory parade. Read moreTyger Williams / Staff Photographer

Published Feb. 26, 2025, 9:57 a.m. ET

WEST BEND, Wis. — Deep in Packers country, in a suburb of Milwaukee, Zack Baun greeted an audience while wearing an assortment of jerseys, from his Wisconsin Badgers No. 56 to his latest, his No. 53 Eagles jersey. But as he walked onto the stage to address about 100 people there to see and celebrate their hometown hero, Baun turned to a chant he’d become familiar with over the last year.

“E-A-G-L-E-S, Eagles!” Baun shouted, much to the delight of a handful of Eagles fans in attendance at West Bend Insurance’s Prairie Center for an event put on by the Kettle Moraine YMCA to recognize their Super Bowl champion on Tuesday night.

Baun, who grew up in West Bend and attended West Bend High School before transferring to Brown Deer, agreed to the event back in October, long before he’d become a catalyst for the Eagles’ Super Bowl run. During a Q&A session hosted by Rob Johnson, CEO of the Kettle Moraine YMCA, Baun’s original YMCA and Boys & Girls Club membership card photos flashed on the screen behind him. Baun, 8 years old at that time, wrote that he wanted to be a football player when he grew up.

“Most of my childhood memories I’ve spent at the Y or the Boys & Girls Club, shuffling between the two,” Baun said. “I went to Silverbrook [Intermediate School] and I remember me and my friends created this path that kind of wrapped through the woods to make our way to the Y, and it was just a hangout spot. … We were there from the time the place opened to the time the place closed.”

Several memorable faces were in the crowd for Baun, who was accompanied by his family. His fourth grade teacher made an appearance, along with opposing high school athletic directors, coaches, and friends, among others. Baun recounted his earliest football memories, and nearly walking away from football altogether when he transferred to Brown Deer before coach Rob Green persuaded him to play. Baun starred at quarterback, accounting for 94 touchdowns and more than 7,000 total yards in two seasons with Brown Deer.

Baun also talked about the “dark times” he faced during his first four NFL seasons with the New Orleans Saints, and said he “wasn’t mentally prepared” for transitioning to the NFL from Wisconsin. But he surpassed even his own expectations for his season in Philadelphia, going from a core special teamer in New Orleans to an All-Pro linebacker for the Eagles, and he shared that sentiment with the crowd.

“In the midst of those tough times, I was just keeping my head on as straight as I possibly could, and kept working and kept working, hoping that it would pay off, hoping that I would get an opportunity, like I ended up doing with the Eagles,” said Baun, who flew back to Wisconsin the day after the Eagles’ Super Bowl parade. “Just praying that all my hard work I put in for this wasn’t for nothing and it just shows that all the hard work you put in, it’s not going nowhere — you just need the right opportunity.”

Before the Q&A in which Baun recounted his journey from sixth grade football to winning on the sport’s biggest stage, the 28-year-old held a meet-and-greet and autograph session with the community. He put several of his autographed helmets and jerseys throughout his football career up for auction to benefit the Kettle Moraine YMCA’s scholarship campaign.

Baun also quipped to the crowd about not growing up a Packers fan and relishing handing Green Bay its first and final losses of the season. He said this Eagles team was “by far the best team I’ve been a part of” before adding with a laugh, “I mean, I’m not going to list all the names, but they’re way better than Packers players, that’s for sure.”