In the first year Ismael Camara played varsity football in Gilmer, Texas he posted more than 170 pancake blocks. He grew up playing soccer, badminton, basketball, swimming, wrestling, judo, football, track and field and boxing in his native France.
His family came to America in May of 2024, and by then Ismael grew to be 6-6, 340. in a football-crazed region he took to the game right away. He liked the violence of it, the opportunity to physically dominate someone.
Ishmael speaks four languages and he's working on the fifth and sixth, Spanish. An exceptionally gifted athlete with a 30-inch vertical leap and a 755-pound squat, at the end of his junior year and first year playing varsity football (league transfer rules kept him on JV as a sophomore) he won MVP of the Navy All-America Combine and Offensive line MVP at the Next Level Athlete Texas Top 100 showcase, named a U.S. Army All-American.
— 5🌟Ismael’’FREAKISH’’Camara (@Only1_iscamara) January 9, 2026
At the Polynesian Bowl he punctuated one winning rep by doing a cartwheel and a roundoff. His combination of power, strength, agility and intelligence put him in another stratosphere as an offensive line prospect, one of one who could form a perfect tandem with Immanuel Iheanacho at guard and tackle. At 6-6, 340 he's honed his body to a 41-inch waist and 19 percent body fat, learning to both move his feet and use his prodigious strength.
— 5🌟Ismael’’FREAKISH’’Camara (@Only1_iscamara) December 28, 2025
Friday was his birthday and the Oregon coaching staff sent birthday greetings. He visited along with Iheanacho, the Ducks' 2026 five-star tackle, for the USC game in November. He takes his official visit on June 19. In April, he'll announce a selection in the NFL draft from the podium in his native France, the face of football in his home country. He likes Chipotle but hates horror movies and roller coasters.
Strength, size and athleticism make Ismael Camara a coveted prospect
At the Polynesian Bowl he told Michael Coleman of KLTV, the ABC affiliate in East Texas, “I am French and my people are from Africa. I got like two whole continents behind me. Plus the USA. Like I say all the time, I’m French born, Texas made.”
Camara had 25 offers before he played in a varsity game, a slate that included Alabama, Texas, Texas A&M. He's booked official visits to Ohio State, Texas A&M, Oregon, Texas, Tennessee and LSU. The bidding will be fierce.
He said to Greg Powers of Dave Campbell's Texas Football Monthly, the bible of prep football in the nation's most passionate football state, "It's a pretty big deal, sir. Ten months ago I was in France, and ten months later, I have all this college attention. I work for that. I have been working for that, and I am thankful."
"My goals are to be the best teammate possible. Be the best guy on the field next year and bring my team with me to win a state championship."
The Ducks can point to the success of Josh Conerly and Emmanuel Iheanacho as NFL first rounders, to three straight Joe Moore Award finalist finishes and two trips to the playoffs, but everybody has a trophy case and a wall of honors.
He's been seen wearing Aggie gear at competitions, and after a trip to Alabama he told Brett Greenburg of 247Sports, “It's always been about relationships for me. I clicked with everybody from the jump.”
This year, the road to a No. 1 recruiting class and a national championship offensive line runs through Gilmer, Texas.