| Notre Dame Fighting Irish–No. 5 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Defensive end |
| Class |  |
| Personal information | |
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Weight | 250 lb (113 kg) |
| Career history | |
| College | Notre Dame (2023–present) |
| High school | Catholic Memorial (West Roxbury, Massachusetts) |
Boubacar Traore is an American college football defensive end for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Traore is from Boston, Massachusetts. [1] His brother, Badara, played college football for the LSU Tigers and later was a member of the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL. [2] He attended Catholic Memorial School in West Roxbury, Massachusetts, where he played football as a defensive end and tight end. [3] He grew from 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) and 215 pounds (98 kg) to 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and 255 pounds (116 kg) by his junior year, becoming one of Catholic Memorial's top players. [3] A Muslim, some of his games were during Ramadan and thus he played through them without drinking any water. [3] Traore helped his team to state championships in his last two seasons. [4] He was named first-team all-state as a senior and was invited to the All-American Bowl. [5] A four-star recruit and a top-150 recruit nationally, he committed to play college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. [4]
As a true freshman at Notre Dame in 2023, Traore played in five games, totaling one sack and a forced fumble. [6] He became a starter in 2024 after an injury to Jordan Botelho and recorded a 34-yard interception return touchdown against Purdue in the third game of the season. [7] He was the team's leader in sacks (3) and tackles-for-loss (5) before suffering a season-ending knee injury in the fifth game of the season. [6]
