Georgia DE Mincey names leader
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Folkston (GA) Charlton County defensive end Justin Mincey wakes up at the crack of dawn everyday to head to the high school to work out with the football team. After spending a few hours in the weight room, he heads home for a quick bite to eat and relax for a few hours because by 3:30 p.m. he is back at the high school playing summer league basketball.
Mincey spends a few more hours at the high school and then returns home where he faces questions about recruiting from friends, family and the media. Mincey’s days are eventful from start to finish, but you won’t hear him complaining.
“I am just starting to relax,” Mincey said.
The 6-foot-6, 250-pound defensive end said that he now has 16 offers. Miami, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, USC, Alabama, Notre Dame, LSU, Oklahoma, Michigan, Virginia, South Carolina and Clemson are some of the teams that have offered.
“To tell you the truth, I was expecting to get about two or three offers,” Mincey said. “I wasn’t expecting to get about 15, 16, 17 offers. It puts a lot of pressure on you because you are wanted by a lot of schools and you are trying to find out which is the right one.”
Even with his days full of activities, Mincey has sat down and compiled of lists of schools that peek his interest.
“The Hurricanes are one of my favorites, I got Florida, Georgia, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Alabama, LSU and Clemson,” he said. “I really don’t have a top five. I am wide open right now. I don’t want to be somewhere like New York or California. I would like to stay in the South or Midwest. I am just trying to take my time and have a great senior year.”
The school closest to Mincey is Florida, which is about an hour and 20 minutes from his home. Mincey has made two unofficial visits to Gainesville -- he attended the NIKE combine in Gainesville in 2003 and made a visit to UF in May where he was scheduled to watch a spring practice, but it was canceled that day. But Mincey still had the chance to meet UF head coach Ron Zook and his staff, which included offensive coordinator Larry Fedora -- who is recruiting Mincey.
“Coach Zook is a pretty good guy,” Mincey said. “He is a real good coach. He has a lot of energy. Coach Fedora is also a good man.”
While on his visit to Gainesville, Mincey discovered that he and UF defensive lineman Jeremy Mincey are cousins.
“Our family is huge,” Mincey said. “My grandma told me we have a lot of family in Statesboro (Ga.). You hear the name Mincey in Statesboro, and it is like the No.1 family name in Statesboro.”
Mincey is also related to former NFL tight end Sterling Sharpe.
Mincey said now that he knows he is Jeremy’s cousin, it will probably be a factor in his final decision. And after his two unofficial visits to UF, the Gators are in good shape to be a contender for Mincey’s signature.
“I like Florida a lot,” Mincey said. “If I had to pick a leader right now I would have to go with Florida. One of the reasons is that it is close to home, but I also like their defensive style.”
Mincey will make a third unofficial visit to Gainesville in July when he attends the second session of the Rising Senior Camp.
When Mincey checks in at the UF camp, he will be 10 pounds lighter. Mincey played his junior season at 260 pounds and now weighs 250 pounds. He has also shaved two-tenths off his 40-yard dash time. He used to run the 40-yard dash in 4.7 seconds, but now clocks in at 4.5 seconds.
But Mincey doesn’t plan to stay at 250 pounds too long. He said he would like to play on the D-I level between 280-290 pounds. While he doesn’t know where he will play college football, he does know he would like to major in marine biology.
“I just love water,” he said. “I am just a water freak.”
Justin Mincey video highlights (Ultimate Ticket subscription required)