Boubacar Traore
Notre Dame#66 overallDraft Movement
Up 25 spots since Jun 8
Scouting Report
Traore is one of the highest-upside, lowest-snap edge prospects in the class, a former consensus four-star from Catholic Memorial (Roxbury, Mass.) and 2023 All-American Bowl invitee who flipped from Boston College to Notre Dame. He flashed early in South Bend with a sack of Heisman winner Caleb Williams as a freshman and a pick-six against Purdue, then tore his left ACL five games into 2024 and missed the Irish national-title run. He grades as a mid-round edge prospect, running a 4.68 forty at 247 pounds, with scouts landing him around the middle of Day 3 overall and as a fringe top-100 talent. Some evaluators frame his tools as a "Day 2 floor and a Day 1 ceiling." On tape Traore wins with a freaky first step, roughly 80-inch arms, and the bend to flatten rush angles around the arc, aligning at 4i, 5-tech and wide-9 in two- and three-point stances. He is a genuine weapon on stunts and games, slipping the A-gap on T-E exchanges, and pairs cross-chops, rips, long-arms, spins and a developing ghost move. His length lets him stack and shed in the run game and his closing burst makes him a dangerous backside pursuer. The concerns are honest: fewer than 200 career snaps before this season, a major knee surgery to clear medically, an inconsistent power profile, and a rush plan that too often defaults to speed. Most projections put him between the late third and middle fifth round, with Day 2 upside if he tests as the elite athlete his forty suggests.
The Tape
Strengths
- Explosive first step that beats tackles off the snap and times the count like a veteran
- roughly 80-inch arm length used to control rush width and create separation
- bend and dip to flatten his angle at the top of the arc
- weapon on stunts and games, slips the A-gap on T-E loops
- diverse pass-rush kit (cross-chop, rip, long-arm, spin, developing ghost)
- inside spin counter set up off a hard speed sell and strong jab step
- long-arm to pry open the B-gap and attack interior lanes
- elite closing burst and pursuit angles to run down stretch plays from the backside
Weaknesses
- Fewer than 200 career defensive snaps before 2025, an incomplete evaluation
- recovering from a torn left ACL, medical checks will be critical
- needs to add 10 to 15 pounds of functional mass
- inconsistent power profile, gets displaced horizontally when tackles get hands inside
- underdeveloped, speed-dependent rush plan that lacks down-to-down variety
- late to engage his hands on some reps and ends up chest-to-chest
- struggles to anchor and hold the point of attack, can open a wide B-gap
- dives at ball carriers instead of driving through, leading to missed tackles
NFL Comparison
Boston/Travon Walker type developmental power-speed edge with rare length and burst but a thin resume; James Houston style late-blooming bend-and-burst rusher who needs technique reps; comparable scheme-versatile 3-4 stand-up OLB projection in the mold of a young Carl Lawson, winning early with first step and length while the power develops
College Stats
2024 (RS Fr): 12 tackles, 3.0 sacks in 5 games before torn left ACL (~133 snaps); 2025: 32 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble, with stat services logging as many as 37 tackles, 23 solo, 6.5 sacks, 1 FF; career snaps still low coming off injury, ~365 snaps logged early in the season
College Market Value
Our model prices him at $1.18M on the open college market, built from production, pedigree, role and Notre Dame's program money. No credible deal has been reported for him this season.
Every P4 player priced, math public: College players & NIL · Roster spend
Measurables
Awards & Honors
2023 All-American Bowl invitee; consensus four-star recruit (national top-230 across the major recruiting services); two-time Massachusetts state champion at Catholic Memorial (12-0 as a junior)