From Dakar, Senegal, to Fukuoka Daiichi High School in Japan, to France, to Southeastern Community College in Iowa and Olney Central College in Illinois, Bira Seck’s path to Idaho was far from one most college athletes take.
Amelia C. Warden | Argonaut
Bira Seck rebounds the ball against Northern Colorado Jan. 24.
Idaho coach Don Verlin first met Seck when he was recruiting another player in Japan — Modou Niang — while he was an assistant at Utah State.
“When I was in Japan recruiting a number of years ago, that’s when I first met Bira and that’s when that relationship formed,” Verlin said. “It was probably eight or nine years ago now. He was just a young kid. Obviously, I didn’t get a chance to recruit him at that time because he was technically a non-recruitable athlete, but he was there and he knew that we were there and we just stayed in touch with him throughout his career.”
Seck, whose full name is El Hadji Ibrahima Seck, said he stayed in contact through Verlin’s friend and fellow Utah State assistant Lance Beckert. Beckert had a connection to Japan as the former coach at Daito Bunka University in Itabashi.
As Seck’s basketball journey continued, he got a call from Verlin while he was at Olney Central College. Seck averaged 8.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game for OCC during the 2012-2013 season.
“I wasn’t really expecting it either,” Seck said. “Going to JUCO, I had a lot more options. But my sophomore year coming back from an injury, because I tore my Achilles tendon … and then one day (Verlin) called me out of nowhere and I was like, ‘I know this guy.’ We talked, he said he was going to take care of me, he needed me. After that, I came to visit and I just changed my mind.”
Seck is one of three Vandals playing in their last home game at Moscow Saturday against Montana State. Connor Hill and Mike Scott join Seck as the three seniors celebrating Senior Night.
Unlike the other two, Seck is a post player. Despite standing at only 6-foot-6, Seck is third in the conference in rebounding at 7.4 rebounds per game.
“It’s willing, it’s wanting the ball,” Seck said of his rebounding. “You don’t have to be tall, you don’t have to jump high, you don’t have to be strong. It’s just wanting the ball more than anybody.”
After graduation, Seck said he may try to pursue professional basketball in Japan before putting his international studies degree to use. He hopes to eventually work for the United Nations or an NGO company.
“I think he’s just a great guy, I can’t say enough about him,” Verlin said. “He’s an international studies major. He’s originally from Dakar, Senegal, but via Japan. He’s an unbelievable story and I was just happy he was able to share it with us and be such a good standup Vandal.”
Stephan Wiebe can be reached at [email protected]