Athletes don’t come much better than the Seabrough brothers. The two are poster kids for what coaches look for in a student-athlete. They’re tall, strong, game-intelligent, driven, dedicated, and hard-working. The ease at which they pick up and excel at every sport they’ve picked up tells of their natural abilities. As it turns out, however, none of that is their “it factor.” Fredrick, or "Fred" for short, and Cedric, also known as "Ced," are twins. The rising seniors have made quite a name for themselves, literally re-writing some parts of Swainsboro High School’s history books with their athletic feats, including helping the Tigers to the 2020 Class AA Boys Basketball State Championship title. They’ve garnered the interest of numerous universities in the process. As they look to the ending of their high school careers in the near future and begin considering their next step, one thing is certain: they’re a package deal.
Lee Stewart and Rosey Young probably gave them the best possible nickname on the airwaves of RadioJones during basketball season. Fred and Ced, who play guard for the Tiger basketball team, are certainly individuals at heart, but on the playing field, it’s only fitting to call them the Twin Towers. At 6’3” and 225 pounds, the brothers are absolutely menacing, no matter if it’s on the gridiron, on the basketball court, or on the soccer pitch.
Of course, they weren’t always such physical specimens. Just like all other athletes, the Seabrough brothers, sons of Fred Seabrough Sr. and Shameka Coleman, started out as young boys, little boys, with big dreams.
“We’ve played sports our entire lives,” Ced explained, “but we didn’t start taking it seriously until middle school. We’ve always had God-given talent to be honest, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t worked hard over the years to develop it.”
The two grew up in the rec leagues, playing basketball and football. It would be several years later before they immersed themselves in a more competitive way. In sixth grade, Ced became more serious about his development than he had been in previous years. Fred’s keenness to be great kicked in a year later. By the time they were eighth graders, the boys had both a rec sectionals title for basketball as well as a middle school basketball championship under their belts. (With the state championship win this year, the twins joined a select group of Swainsboro boys who can say they’ve earned more than one basketball title.)
Because they enjoyed basketball so much and because they were good at it, the boys dreamed of going to the NBA. For a long time, that continued to be the goal—until it wasn’t any more. The twins have continued playing football, and despite winning a basketball state championship just months ago, coaches are more interested in recruiting them for the former.
“We didn’t really think football would be the way to go,” Fred said. “We always thought we’d go to the NBA if we had the chance to go pro. I know it won’t happen tomorrow, but if we’re looking at the future, the NFL seems more likely.”
Indeed, the brothers might be onto something, given the interest the tight ends have received from various schools thus far. The coronavirus pandemic has certainly affected their recruiting process, just like it has other recruits across the nation, but the brothers landed one major offer before the health crisis struck.
Frustrated by the fact they were surrounded by 4- and 5-star recruits who were raking in offers while they received none, Fed and Ced finally got to breathe a sigh of relief when NC State broke the ice.
“I kept talking to God, questioning everything. Here we were, working so hard, making good connections with people like Cam Newton, staying healthy, getting ourselves on coaches’ radars, yet nothing was happening. All these other guys were getting offers, and we weren’t. It was a little worrisome to be honest, but we kept praying about it. Sure enough, God answered in His time because we got our first offer in church before the pink-out game last fall,” Ced recalled. “We were eating our pregame meal when the coaches pulled us aside and told us.”
Though it was unimaginably difficult, the twins kept it quiet for the sake of focusing on the task at hand for the time being. Since then, though, the interest has only increased. Among the interested schools are Western Kentucky University, Coastal Carolina University, Florida Atlantic, UAB, Maryland, Liberty, and others. The Seabroughs are still feeling the impacts of COVID-19 as many coaches wanted to see them workout this spring, but they’re confident their futures are going to pan out as hoped—together.
“Our whole lives, we’ve done everything together. Every school we’ve talked to, we’ve been open about the fact that we’re a package deal. Honestly, we’re better that way,” Ced commented. “It would just be weird if we went our separate ways at this point.”
Ask any of their coaches what it’s like to have this particular set of twins on a roster and, to hear the boys tell it, those coaches would say it’s beneficial yet frustrating. One of the questions they hear the most is whether or not they experience twin telepathy. While most people jokingly inquire about that, the twins, in full disclosure, always own up to it. Fred and Ced often run “trick plays” of their own, straying from the game plan to follow their common intuition under the pretense they just know their own plan will work, and it usually does. If such an advantage wasn’t natural, it’d be plain unfair.
That edge, that authentic quality, is precisely what sets Fred and Ced apart from everyone else in their recruiting class. However, that isn’t the only draw for college coaches. The twins have had five extraordinary coaches along the way. Dwight Smith, Scott Roberts, Ashley Hooks, and Brice Hobbs are due for credit at the school level, developing the brothers’ skillsets. Legendary Cam Newton’s 7-on-7 league, practice sessions, and mentorship regarding the mental part of the game has helped tremendously as well. The Seabroughs are getting it done in the classroom to boot; their academics are right on par in order to be accepted into the many universities pursuing twins. Some of the influential teachers along the way, Ced and Fred said, include Luci McNeely, Lindsey Sconyers, and Amanda Freeman. The brothers also openly talked about the special heartfelt connection they share with the lunch ladies; Fred makes it a point to give them all hugs whenever possible.
Fred and Ced’s fast-approaching senior year has them considering what they want to accomplish next. The two agree on winning a state championship in football and adding another trophy to the case for basketball. More importantly, the brothers want to help bring more recruiting attention and lock in offers for the younger players while continuing to be examples of how to make it out of little ol’ Swainsboro.
Because of their talent, many expected the Seabroughs to leave their rural town and attend a prep school in a larger area in exchange for more frequent college looks. That isn’t in their DNA, though. The brothers are loyal to the town and all the ones who have helped them on their journey. They’ve heard innumerable motivational talks from their parents, their dad especially, about staying focused. They’ve watched other Tigers like Derrick Jones, Jaylan McKinney, and Kade Youmans play the game right and wrap up successful careers. Most importantly, Ced and Fred have two sets of young eyes looking at them every day: their little brother, Daron Coleman, who will join them at SHS this coming year, and their younger sister, Precious Coleman.
All of these motivators culminate into a tunnel-vision view of the future. Though the whereabouts of where they’ll end up has yet to be determined, Fred and Ced have some specific plans for college. First and foremost, the high school standouts hope to make the transition into the collegiate level as seamless as possible while staying the course academically.
“We know playing time right off the bat might be harder to come by in college, but I’m going to trust the process,” Fred said. His brother added that he is going to believe in his talent.
In the meantime, they’re going to keep working to prove themselves to their coaches, teammates, friends, family, teachers, and recruiters.
“Everybody thinks we’re boisterous, but we’re not,” Fred commented. “We’re humble. We’re not big-headed. We know our talent comes from God, and we realize that all the opportunities we’ve been offered to date are because of Him, but we also know we’ve got to keep working hard because that’s part of it… You can’t go further and get where you want to be without giving your best effort. We’ve got some big goals, so we’re going to keep doing the work, grinding it out, to make everybody proud.”
“It’s a lot of pressure, but pressure is a privilege,” Ced added. “Everybody asks us, ‘Are y’all gonna remember us when y’all make it?’ Making it is the goal for sure, but we’re trying to keep level heads and form a back-up plan just in case things don’t work out athletically. When people ask us if we’re going to remember them when we make it, I think the better question is, ‘Will you remember us if we don’t?’”
The weight of those considerations is heavy, but a single shared moment for Fred and Ced is representative of the foundation they have that will see them through to whatever end is meant to be for the twins. Just before tipoff of the state championship game, Fred went to halfcourt in the Macon Coliseum and knelt down. That twin telepathy kicked in within a fraction of a moment. Without laying eyes on his brother, Ced knew exactly where to go. One 6’3”, 225 lb. youngster turned into two. The crowd saw double as the two said a prayer. Together, they prayed for victory. Together, they prayed for God’s will. Both of those prayers were granted. The Seabroughs and their respective talents led the Tigers to a state championship win. After an hour and a half of play, they helped hoist Swainsboro High’s newest piece of coveted hardware. It is that precise talent and that same faith that will see the twins onto the next chapter of their lives. Somebody needs to put the next level on notice while there’s still time… The Twin Towers are coming.
