SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE FOOTBALL MEDIA DAYS

July 21, 2026

Issa Ouattara

Vanderbilt Commodores

Press Conference

Q. You're coming off a season injury from last season. How are you feeling going into the season? And what does success look like for you not being able to play last year?

ISSA OUATTARA: Yeah, I mean, it was a huge trial, is what I like to call it. Getting taken out, especially if you're a key contributor and it was supposed to be my last year. So I had a lot of dreams and personal aspirations for myself. And when that all goes out the window, it asks you who are you, and how much do you love this?

So for me, it was just a way to double down on my investment in a way. And being able to pour into the guys around me was great.

Q. Obviously team goals are at the top of your list. What individual goals are you going to meet this year to get that team to not only get to 10 wins but get to 11?

ISSA OUATTARA: Eleven wins isn't going to cut it. We want to win the national championship. And that's our team goal but also my personal goal. Everybody eats when you win and that's the bottom line.

Q. As one of the older guys, what are you hoping to pour into the younger guys on the team and future Vanderbilt football players?

ISSA OUATTARA: Coach Lea always says some of us carry deeper scars than others, and it's on us who have those deeper scars to share our experiences and have guys learn secondhand almost from the experiences we've made during our time here. And that's probably the biggest part, is just pouring into the younger guys and kind of delivering a sense of urgency about how we operate.

Q. Last fall you were named one of the team captains. From the responses, it seems very well named. What does that title mean to you? How do you plan to continue be that leader for these players into this next season?

ISSA OUATTARA: To me, being a team captain, it might sound funny, but it was never a goal of mine, nothing I ever aspired to. It's just something that happened organically over time. But it's the greatest honor I've gotten in my life, honestly, just knowing that those guys can count on you and come to you about anything and everything.

Doesn't have to be football-related, just life, just being somebody, like an outlet sometimes. It's not like the football conversation about how high I am on a depth chart is like something -- is going on in your personal life and you know you need to talk to somebody. Just being there for the guys is always number one for me.

Q. It's Saturday night in September in Nashville. You're at FirstBank Stadium getting ready to go on the field. Commodore fans are going just crazy. Still get goosebumps?

ISSA OUATTARA: Every time. Every time. Any opportunity I get to step on a field, that's a blessing to me. And it's something I've, honestly, learned even more so, not being able to be out there every time last year. It's just a blessing, and I love to play the sport.

Q. How does it feel to be the chosen athlete to represent Vanderbilt here in Tampa?

ISSA OUATTARA: It's truly humbling. I'm not a big rah rah guy, or I might not give the juiciest interviews. I'm just up here being myself. And knowing that Coach Lea and my team has trusted me in things and I'm a good representation of the team is just ultimately truly humbling and an honor.

Q. Mississippi State is back on your schedule after a few years not seeing each other. How do you feel about coming to Starkville and playing with the loudness of the cow bells?

ISSA OUATTARA: I'm excited. I've heard a lot about it. I haven't gotten to experience it firsthand. So it will be a first for me. But I'm always excited to play in a new environment. And the SEC has so many great stadiums that any game day is a great experience.

Q. You didn't take up football until 2019. What were you doing before then? And were you watching football before then?

ISSA OUATTARA: I actually wasn't tuned into football whatsoever. I didn't know much about the sport. It was new to me. I maybe have seen a Super Bowl or two. But I watched some highlights, but that was probably it.

I played a bunch of different sports growing up, though. Maybe not what you would expect. I did tennis, swimming, rowing, gymnastics when I was really young. Football was kind of the first one that fully stuck with me.

Q. Having spent time off to both heal and reflect, what did you learn about yourself as a player and as a person?

ISSA OUATTARA: To me, I say just being off the field, I felt like God was asking me, how bad do you want this? Do you truly want it? Because a lot of people say they do, but at the end of the day, how bad do you want it?

And I feel like my personal situation, having come from Germany, left my family to come here and pursue this sport, I feel like I was proving that.

But I feel like I was lacking in some areas. Some of it was leadership. I'm a big -- leading by example was something I thought was enough in the past. But I've grown to learn that it takes way more, and that's just the bear minimum. So I feel like I've grown a lot in my leadership.

Q. Being from Germany, what helped you pick Vanderbilt? What about this program brought you here?

ISSA OUATTARA: That's a great question. To me, it was the people. At the end of the day, I wanted to play the best competition week in and week out. I wanted to become the best football player I could be. But being that far removed from blood family, you know, the people I'm around every day is going to matter that much more.

So to me it was getting there and talking to the people, talking to the coaches, talking to Coach Lea and seeing his vision for the program. And how sincere he is as a human being was -- he cares about your development on and off the field. And a lot of people say it, but he actually does it. And he's very invested in your overall success.

And sometimes I talk to recruits and recruits families and I tell them I'm not the same person I was when I first got to Vanderbilt. And I don't think you're supposed to be. You get stressed in many ways.

It's been a great experience, like I would send my kids to Vanderbilt for whatever that means. I might be a little biased but that's just how I feel.

Q. Unless you talk to somebody who's been involved in football, somebody who hasn't, probably can't comprehend what culture in that locker room is. Tell me what culture in the Vanderbilt locker room is?

ISSA OUATTARA: Ultimately, we say relatedness is our edge, and we truly believe that. It's the care we bring. We're high-care individuals. I don't want -- a nonchalant teammate is the worst thing you could be to me. I don't want you to just be the cool guy and everything. I want you to care.

And that comes at a price. When you fall short of expectations, when you don't win, whatever it may be, it hurts that much more. But I feel like that's what makes it worth at the end of the day.

So, yeah, I mean, it's bottom line it's the care that we have for one another and the love that's in that locker room.

Q. Being in the conference the last few years, what would have been the most exciting or best places that you've played football in? And which one are you most excited for this season?

ISSA OUATTARA: I have to think about that one. Every stadium or every team in the SEC has so much culture and is so deeply rooted. The people that come to those games care so much about their team. They've been fans of that given team their whole life. You know what I'm saying?

They might have been season ticket holders for the longest time. But for us, at Vanderbilt, that's not always been the case.

But it's just amazing to see all these different environments. I get to appreciate so many -- like, few people in this world are fortunate to get to do what I get to do every day. So I just have a great appreciation for it.

My favorite stadium, it might be Florida. Might be Florida. A lot of history. A lot of greats going through there. It's just a fun environment to play in.

Q. Coach Lea talked about that watershed moment for him was winning that sixth game and getting playoff eligible. Was there a time or a game last year where you felt the team said, hey, we're for real?

ISSA OUATTARA: I don't think there was a given game. I think the belief, like, we have in our mission comes from within. So we don't really, like, forecast or, like, look at things to tell us who we are. The confidence comes from the preparation and from within the locker room.

So I don't have that game for you. A game that was personally emotional for me was at UTK. Just seeing what it meant to so many people who had been in that locker room for a while, some of the coaches who had played at Vanderbilt and now get to coach.

It was just a long time coming. So I'd say that was probably my most emotional game, if you will.

Q. You talked a lot about the importance of the team dynamic within the locker room. How do you think that team dynamic transfers over to the actual game?

ISSA OUATTARA: I think that's quintessential. There's nothing more important. You can go that much further when you care about the guy next to you. And that just takes time. And this day and age of college football, you rarely get the same guys on the team two years in a row.

It's credit to Coach Lea on building a culture that lasts further than just a couple of individuals. But it's the totality of our team.