NFL Draft Diamonds Prospect Interview: Austin Conway, TE, Tabor College
What is your name?
Austin Conway
What is your Height/Weight?
I am 6 foot 4 and weigh 245 pounds
What is your position?
I play tight end and long snap
Where do you play college football?
I played Junior college football at Laney College in Oakland, California and transferred to Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kansas.
Where are you from?
I am from Castro Valley, CA
Who is your role model, and why?
My role model is my dad because he taught me to always work as hard as you can and to never quit.
Who was your favorite teacher?
My favorite teacher was my 12th grade government teacher Mr. Marlis. He made learning fun and interesting.
Did you play any other sports growing up?
I played baseball, basketball and lacrosse.
Who was the toughest player you ever faced?
The toughest player I have ever faced was probably the defensive end, #11 from Morningside College in 2016.
Who is the most underrated player on your team?
DiMitri Bowie, he’s a great player with a great work ethic and never got the recognition he deserved in my opinion.
What is the one song that would fire you up before the biggest game of your life?
Get Buck In Here -DJ Felli Fel
If you could compare your play to one player in the NFL who would it be and why?
I would compare myself to Greg Olsen from the Carolina Panthers because we are similar in size and he is a good blocker, has consistent hands and runs good routes.
What was the biggest obstacle in your life you had to overcome, and how did you overcome it?
A few weeks before my sophomore season at Laney community college I got a staph infection in my blood stream and spent 2 weeks in the hospital and had to miss that whole season for medical reasons related to the staph infection. It was tough because I worked so hard the whole off season and that season was taken away by something I couldn’t control. I also felt like I was letting my team down by not being able to play with them.
Do you have any pre-game rituals?
Talk to my brother and parents on the phone the night before a game
What was the most memorable play of your collegiate career?
Scoring my first touchdown the week after one of my best friends passed away.
What is the coolest thing you ever did off the field for someone else?
At Tabor College my team had a program where players would go to the local elementary schools and read to the students and hang out with them at recess and I thought it was pretty cool to give back to the community and it was cool how the kids were always so happy and excited just to see us on the days we would go to their school.
Who was your favorite NFL team growing up?
Philadelphia Eagles and SF 49ers
If you could have dinner with three people dead or alive, who would you choose?
Rob Gronkowski, and both my grandfathers.
NFL Draft Diamonds was created to assist the underdogs playing the sport. We call them diamonds in the rough. My name is Damond Talbot, I have worked extremely hard to help hundreds of small school players over the past several years, and will continue my mission. We have several contributors on this site, and if they contribute their name and contact will be in the piece above. You can email me at nfldraftdiamonds@gmail.com