Tennessee football transfer DL joins Butch Jones at Arkansas State

He committed to Tennessee football as a three-star out of Georgia three months after the Vols fired Butch Jones. Three years later, John Mincey is joining the former UT head coach anyway, ironically on the heels of the Vols firing Jones’ successor, Jeremy Pruitt, who recruited Mincey.

The reserve defensive lineman revealed Tuesday that he is transferring to the Arkansas State Red Wolves. Mincey, who hails from Clinch County High School in Homerville, Ga., saw action all three seasons on Rocky Top as a backup.

Standing at 6’3″ 276 pounds, Mincey spent time on the line and at outside linebacker for Tennessee football and saw action in a total of 24 games. He revealed he had entered the portal back in early March and announced his decision to join Arkansas State on Twitter.

For his career, Mincey compiled 18 total tackles, eight solo tackles, two and a half tackles for a loss and a sack. He appeared in all 10 games last year and has been a reliable backup edge rusher and defensive lineman for the Vols.

However, with all the veteran defensive linemen taking advantage of that NCAA eligibility ruling and coming back for an extra senior year, it was clear that Mincey would be buried in the depth chart again. As a result, he probably made the right decision transferring.

Joining Jones, though, is ironic. Perhaps there’s a connection between the two. Although Mincey committed to Pruitt’s 2018 class, it’s possible that Jones spent time recruiting him to Rocky Top before he was fired.

Either way, all fans should wish Mincey the best. He made a decision he felt was best for him, and even if it means playing for a coach who Vol fans hold in low regard, everybody should root for the players trying to do what’s best for their future. Tennessee football also has plenty of depth on the defensive line anyway for this year.