Is Mincey's mind made up?
Early in the week, it looked like John Mincey would take one more official visit this weekend. He thought hard about checking out Ole Miss, but after talking it over with those close to him and re-thinking his decision, he decided to stay home.
That means the Rebels are out. Florida State was being considered too for a visit, but the Seminoles are out as well.
It is down to South Carolina and Tennessee for the 6-foot-4, 258 pound defensive end out of Homerville (Ga.) Clinch County.
"I have a good idea where I am going," said Mincey. "It is down to two SEC schools, South Carolina and Tennessee, so I feel good about going to one of those schools. I would say that I know where I am going, but I am just not ready to put it out yet.
"I will do that on Signing Day (February 7)."
An exact time to announce his decision has not been set yet, but Mincey expects it to be early in the day Wednesday.
He will be ready.
"Oh yeah, I really cannot wait to commit and get this over with. It has been a tough decision and I have had to think about this a lot, but I have made the best decision for me.
"It was getting frustrating with all of the phone calls and it was a little stressful, so I am looking forward to next week. The coaches came hard at me, so it was a lot for me, so now it is going to get easier."
With his mind made up, Mincey is now just counting down the days until he can reveal his decision to everyone. He said only one or two people know where he is going and nobody in his family has gotten the news from him yet.
Will he end up in Knoxville? He had his in-home visit with them earlier this week and a great visit there earlier this month. The connection he has with a couple of Vol coaches made a big impact.
"The coaches at Tennessee were really what made them stick out to me. I met coach [Tracy] Rocker and coach [Kevin] Sherrer since ninth grade when I was going up to Georgia for camps and stuff. They are great guys, they had a real impact on me and they are good guys.
"I also liked the players at Tennessee, the facilities and the feeling on campus. It is real nice up there."
What Mincey had to say about the Gamecocks was very similar to his response about Tennessee.
"The people at South Carolina is what it is all about for me. It is kind of like Tennessee with the coaches being the best part. I am close with coach Lance Thompson and T-Rob (Travaris Robinson), so that is important.
"I have gotten to know some of the players there too, like Javon Kinlaw and Keir Thomas, so it was cool with them too. I have a good feeling there like I do at Tennessee."
Instead of it being South Carolina vs. Tennessee, it is almost like Sherrer/Rocker vs. Thompson/Robinson. It came down to who Mincey felt best being around moving forward.
"It came down to who I felt I had the best relationship with," said Mincey. "I am going to be spending the next four to five years at this school, so the relationships are very important to me."
