Conway Shares Love for Hoops
NOVEMBER 10, 2023
By Conner Felts
Sean Conway, a senior forward on the VMI basketball team, can’t remember a time that he wasn’t playing the sport.
“From the time I was able to walk, my parents put the ball in my hands along with my older brother J.J.,” he recalls.
From playing ball with his siblings—Conway is one of nine children—he developed a love for the sport in middle school thanks to the connections it fostered.
“What I really liked about it is that it led me to form some amazing friendships with other kids growing up who had similar interests as me. To this day, I am still best friends with a lot of my friends from back home. We grew up playing basketball together all the time. Hoops is the first thing that connected us.”
Along with playing card games and listening to music, Conway enjoys watching television and movies with family and friends. He’s particularly a fan of 1990s/2000s hits “Friends.”
“Although this show was before my time, I feel that any generation can connect to it,” he said. “I’m a big fan of the whole cast, I feel that each character is different in their own ways; however, they all mesh very well together to form a great friend group. Listening to music is something I love to do as well. As someone who has eight other siblings, it’s safe to say that I’ve been introduced to a fair share of different genres throughout my life. If I had to pick one song as my favorite, I would have to say ‘With or Without You’ by U2.”
Being a student-athlete at VMI is a strenuous job. The balance between being a student and being a top-tier athlete is something Conway has mastered over his four years at VMI.
“Considering each day presents new challenges here at VMI, I think the best thing anyone here can do is have a plan of attack to overcome the obstacles ahead.”
Conway was able to start his cadetship off strong and get ahead of his busy schedule early on thanks to his mentor, Tyler Creammer.
“Trying to balance being a cadet and an athlete takes a while to get used to,” he said.
Conway said he keeps himself accountable by having a set schedule for every day.
“What I try to do is have set times for homework, workouts, and naps. I love naps! Another thing that has helped me is knowing when I am faced with certain challenges and adversity, I always have my teammates and brother rats to rely on. Oftentimes here at VMI, the person to my right and left are likely enduring similar struggles as my own.”
Conway puts basketball at the top of his list of things he cannot live without.
“Outside faith, family and friends, basketball is the next most important thing to me.”
Playing Division I basketball was a dream for Conway since he first stepped onto a court. But he knew that making it happen would take more than dreaming, it would take discipline and sacrifice.
“As someone who isn’t the tallest, fastest, or strongest, I knew I would have to rely on my work ethic in order to outwork the competition.”
Conway credits his father for much of his motivation and work ethic, saying his dad pushed him to always be better.
“My father was the person in my life who was with me every step of the way,” he said. “Even when I come home in the summer now, as a 22-year-old, I’m still working out with him every day. That has been the case ever since I was 10 years old. I’m extremely thankful for that. The bond we have created as a result of endless hours spent together in the gym is something I’ll never take for granted. Without having my father by my side guiding me, my dream of playing Division One basketball would not have been achieved. He’s someone who has sacrificed so much to help me become who I am today. If I’m lucky enough to have a kid one day who has aspirations of playing basketball in college, I will do my best to instill everything in them that my father has done in me.”