Work ethic pays off for Eugene Seals with Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame induction

Based on pure talent, Eugene Seals isn’t sure he belongs in the Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame.

But the former Saginaw High and Miami (Ohio) basketball star will still take his place at the induction banquet Sunday, Nov. 7, at Horizons Conference Center. Tickets are $50 in advance, $55 after Oct. 25. Tickets are available by calling 989-239-9874 or 989-737-4725.

“I was never the most talented guy on the floor, but I was always one of the hardest workers,” Seals said. “That’s what I was always the most proud of. If you looked at just individual talent, I should not have had the career I did.

“My tenacity and determination to be one of the best is what got me there. Most of the time, I usually had a teammate who was one of the best guys on the floor.”

But if a teammate was one of the best players on the court, Seals was not far behind. The 6-foot-6 guard played all four years on the Saginaw High varsity, averaging 16.5 points, 12.2 rebounds and 5 assists per game as a senior. Seals, the Saginaw Valley League Most Valuable Player, finished second in the 2000 Mr. Basketball voting to Lansing Waverly’s Marcus Taylor.

“I’m proud of just making it as a basketball player, as a whole,” Seals said. “I remember starting off as a 10-year-old playing in my first AAU tournament in Minnesota and competing some of the best 10-year-olds in the country, guys who would play in the NBA some day.”

After playing for Marshall Thomas at Saginaw High, Seals opted to play for another Saginaw High coach, joining Charlie Coles at Miami (Ohio). He played in all but one game as a freshman and earned Miami’s Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore, averaging 8 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocked shots per game.

Injuries slowed Seals his junior and senior years at Miami, but he still ranks among the top shot-blockers in Miami history. After Miami, Seals played in the NBA Summer League and then internationally in Spain, Macedonia, Columbia and Mexico.

Seals, who was the head boys basketball coach at Bridgeport, is currently the head coach for the Saginaw Heritage girls basketball varsity team, as well as the executive director of Pride Academy 21, a sports training program for athletes ages 7-18.

“I always had great coaches like Marshall Thomas and Coach Coles, plus the person who taught me how to play basketball, Reg Robinson,” Seals said. “I’m making sure that I give all of these athletes the opportunity I was given, to be as good as they want to be. I know I can’t do it for them, but I know I can give them the tools to be successful. If they listen like I did and try their hardest, they can be successful.

“Going into the Hall of Fame, maybe I do know what I’m talking about.”

Seals also appreciates the timing of the induction. His daughter, Elle, is 10 years old, while his son, Noah, is 9 years old.

“They get to see it, and they get to understand what’s going on,” Seals said. “It’s great for me because my son is now into sports, watching videos, understanding who’s who and what they’ve accomplished. The fact that I’m being put into the Hall of Fame means something.

“But my daughter probably could not care less. After everything, the most important thing to them is my position as father.”

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