100 Day Bulldog Countdown: 82 Days - TE Seydou Traore and K Nick Barr-Mira
Jeff Lebby’s era of Mississippi State football has arrived.
The Bulldogs are on their third coach in as many years as Mike Leach’s tragic passing opened the door for defensive coordinator Zach Arnett’s debut as head coach last year. That experiment failed before the year even ended for State and now it’s Lebby’s turn to take the wheel.
While there is always a risk in hiring first time head coaches, Lebby brings to Starkville an exciting offensive scheme that has been productive everywhere he’s been. The coach has also brought with him some swagger that has the fanbase ready to see what’s next.
Over the course of the next 100 days, we will take a look at Lebby’s roster and even some fun historical rewinds that will bring back memories for Dawg fans of all ages.
Today, we look at a couple of players poised for a breakout season.
100 Day Bulldog Countdown: 82 Days – No. 82, Jr. TE Seydou Traore
He’s waited well over a year and now Traore is ready for his chance.
The former Arkansas State tight end transferred to Colorado after the team’s 2022 season and then transferred again after the spring. Traore ultimately landed in Starkville but he had to sit out all of last season due to his second transfer.
At 6’4, 225 pounds, Traore is a mismatch at his position. He was First-Team All-Sun Belt and an Honorable Mention All-American as a sophomore at ASU. A native of London, England, Traore was fairly new to the American game of football. When he transferred to Clearwater Academy in Florida for his senior year in 2020, Traore had never played organized 11-man football.
In year one with the Red Wolves, Traore had 12 catches for 97 yards and 65 of those came on two catches in the final two games of the season. That’s when things began to click for the tight end. In 2022, the sophomore would be the team’s leading receiver as he hauled in 655 yards and had four touchdowns on the way to leading the conference in catches and yards among tight ends.
After sitting out a full season, Traore is getting back into action at a perfect time. He enters year one of the Lebby era with a chance to make some big plays for the Bulldog offense. He is the favorite to land the starting job at his position though fending off Justin and Cameron Ball won’t be easy.
Top 10
- 1
Kaidon Salter
Transfer QB signs with Colorado
- 2Hot
Zach Arnett
UNLV hiring former MSU HC
- 3Trending
SEC and Netflix
2024 season getting docuseries
- 4
Kirk Herbstreit
ESPN star talks son to Michigan
- 5
Jake Dickert
Wazzu HC hired by Wake Forest
Get the On3 Top 10 to your inbox every morning
No. 82, Sr. K Nick Barr-Mira
Barr-Mira season last year could probably be characterized as frustrating.
The UCLA transfer came to Starkville expecting to be the Bulldogs’ placekicker but injuries dealt a blow to his first few months on campus. After missing the first four games due to injury and seeing freshman Kyle Ferrie take over the placekicking duties, Barr-Mira would make the most of his opportunities.
Barr-Mira took over kickoff duties for the Bulldogs and excelled. In 31 of his kickoffs, 25 of them went for touchbacks. He made both of his extra points and had one field goal attempt that was a make from 49 yards away. In that ball game against Western Michigan where he kicked his first field goal, Barr-Mira also made all eight of his extra points.
At UCLA, Barr-Mira had a strong career. He was 35-of-49 during his three seasons with a long of 49 yards. Barr-Mira also punted his final year at UCLA as he booted 25 balls for a 42.8 yards per punt average with nine fair catches, six punts of 50 or more yards and nine fair catches.
Now that he’s fully healthy, Barr-Mira will have a chance to compete for a couple of different starting roles this year. He’s likely to repeat as the team’s kickoff specialist and will have a chance to take over place kicking duties as well.
