From day one Chinchar thought “we got something”.
Traore learned his first playbook in a matter of days, which is like learning a new language. And playing as a wide receiver, he was immediately dominant against kids who had played the game their whole life.
He thinks his goalkeeping skills helped.
“Hand-eye coordination, tracking and locating balls, leaping down low or up high, and attacking the ball at corner kicks, that translates very well,” Traore says.
“That’s how American football is when they throw the ball up to you, you attack it at its highest point.”
Chinchar agrees, adding: “I’ve felt that my guys who had a background in soccer have that understanding of spatial awareness, which I think in [American] football is an under-rated trait.”
Chinchar was also impressed by Traore’s character and self-belief. Even when he received his first college offer, he bet on himself getting a better one. That eventually came from Arkansas State.
Their head coach Butch Jones was working late when his tight ends coach came into his office and said: “I keep hearing about this player. I think he’s special, there’s something different about him.”
They watched videos of Traore and Jones soon made a “hefty comparison”. He called Seydou a clone of Travis Kelce, whom he coached at Cincinnati and helped convert into one of the best tight ends in NFL history.
“Seydou’s size and stature coupled with his athleticism – the way he ran, the way he caught the ball – it made him a rare commodity,” says Jones. “He had unlimited potential.”
Traore had barely played at tight end and had already committed to another college. Jones therefore had to ‘flip’ him – so he called on his old friend.
He set up a group video call in which Kelce gave Seydou some advice and convinced him to trust coach Jones and his staff. Seydou signed in February 2021 and transitioned to tight end, showing natural instincts for the position.
Traore saw himself as a “big ball of clay” that Jones could mould, and the coach says he was “like a sponge” in terms of retaining information.
“In his first year Seydou looked like a young deer that could run but hadn’t really matured yet, grown into his body,” adds Jones.
“By year two you could see that development. He made some plays where you were in awe on the sideline.”
Like Kelce, Traore can hurdle defenders, and in 2022 he was named the best tight end in the Sun Belt Conference. But he was determined to step up to the top level of college football, Division 1 FBS.