Seydou Traoré’s first encounter with American football came not on a field but in front of a television set, where he watched the weekly NFL analysis show hosted by Jason Bell and Osi Umenyiora on a British channel. Decades later, he has become the very subject of that kind of scrutiny.

Born in France but raised in the United Kingdom, the 23‑year‑old tight end hails from South London and has just been chosen by the Miami Dolphins with the 180th overall pick in the NFL Draft. His journey to this moment has been anything but conventional.

As a child he tended the goalposts as a soccer goalkeeper, dreaming like countless other British youngsters of a career in football – the beautiful game – before swapping the round ball for an oblong one and learning to cradle it as a tight end. The parks and schoolyards of South London have been replaced by the swamps of Florida, the red‑clay fields of Arkansas, and the humid stadiums of Mississippi as he forged a winding path through college football. "I didn’t start playing American football until I was well into my teens," Traoré recalls.

"My first experience was with the London Warriors, a team that was only about ten minutes from my house. Growing up in Westmoreland, South London, I fell in love with the sport. Before that I was trying everything – soccer, rugby, basketball – anything the school offered or that I could get my hands on. Soccer was my first passion, but once I tried football I was hooked.

I ended up spending a year at the NFL Academy during the COVID‑19 pandemic, then moved to Clearwater Academy in Florida." At Clearwater he logged 26 receptions for 433 yards and three touchdowns in a single season, earning a three‑star prospect rating and a scholarship to Arkansas State University. "Playing American football in London, only the few who actually play there understand how big the sport can be overseas," he says.

"When I told my family I was going to travel half the world to chase a dream they didn’t fully grasp, they just trusted me. They knew I was determined and would follow any path I set for myself." Traoré’s breakout came at Arkansas State, where he was named First‑Team All‑Sun Belt after leading the conference in tight‑end receptions during his freshman year. He finished his two‑year stint with the Red Wolves amassing 62 catches for 752 yards and four touchdowns, a performance that earned him a transfer to the University of Colorado. After a single semester in Boulder, he entered the transfer portal again and landed at Mississippi State, where he would spend the final chapter of his college career.

The move to Starkville felt like a revelation. "Last year my family came to the States for the first time and they got to see the scale of college football. It was an eye‑opener. I remember playing at Ohio State with Arkansas State – over 100,000 fans in the stadium – and thinking, ‘Wow, this is insane.’ That moment cemented the reality of the stage I was on." His senior season, however, was not without setbacks.

NCAA transfer rules forced him to sit out the 2023 campaign after his brief Colorado episode, delaying his on‑field debut for the Bulldogs. The missed year could have been a disappointment, but Traoré turned it into motivation. "It reminded me that I’ll always chase an opportunity, even if it doesn’t arrive this week or next," he explains. "Being sidelined forced me to dig deep, stay focused on preparation, and remember why I’m here – I’m not just going to sit in my dorm and sulk." Living in the American South for five years has also reshaped his lifestyle.

"I’m still the same person, but the South feels like countryside compared to the hustle of London. The slower pace has taught me tranquility and patience. You have to keep knocking on doors; eventually one opens, and you step through." By the time he left Mississippi State, Traoré had compiled 126 receptions for 1,402 yards and ten touchdowns, five of those scores coming in his final season. He often spent moments after practice staring at the wall of NFL alumni photos in the team’s indoor facility, visualizing himself joining that elite group.

Despite the imminent professional leap, he remains grounded in his origins. "I always remember my roots – the grass fields next to my house where I ran routes as a kid.

I want people back home to see that it’s possible, that the hills I grew up on can lead to the NFL. My message is simple: if you care deeply about something, chase it. Don’t listen to the ifs, buts, or maybes. When it’s in your heart, it’s achievable."