Philly’s Andre Mintze once thought his football career was over. Nearly a decade later, he’s thriving in the UFL.
Mintze was part of the Imhotep Charter team that became the first Public League school to win a state title in 2015. A decade later, he's continuing his football journey on the UFL's DC Defenders.
Not long after Andre Mintze stepped on Vanderbilt’s campus in 2016, he thought it was all over. During the fall camp heading into his freshman football season with the Commodores, he suffered a torn ACL in his left knee for a third time since the start of high school, and his season was gone in a blink of an eye.
“I thought I made it this far for absolutely nothing, but God had different plans,” Mintze, a Philly native, said recently. “[For] me, tearing my same ACL three times, still at a Division I school, playing Power [Four] football; it was a walking blessing.”
But Mintze never relented and didn’t let his knee injury hold him back. The former Imhotep Charter standout carved out a role at linebacker for Vanderbilt, received the university’s 2020 Godfrey Dillard Courage Award, which is given to an athlete who “has overcome adversity,” and finished with 75 tackles, 17 tackles for losses, and 8½ sacks in 43 games over five seasons for the Commodores.
Mintze went undrafted out of Vanderbilt, had a brief stint in the NFL, and has continued his career with the DC Defenders, formerly of the XFL and now part of the United Football League. And he has become one of the more dominant pass rushers in the spring professional football league.
“At one point in time, we didn’t make the rosters that gave us opportunity to play, so it gives us a chance to play professional football and show that we are still available and we’re still capable of doing our job,” said Mintze. “I’ve been here for three years, and I’ve been here with a number of teammates, and it kind of made us brothers, just dealing with everything that comes with playing spring football. It’s chippy, it’s competitive, it’s slightly different rules than the [NFL] as far as the point system and stuff like that, but it’s professional football in its purest form, and it really ignites the love of the game.”
‘Brother for life’
On the Defenders, Mintze has a familiar face from high school playing alongside him. Offensive tackle Yasir Durant, who was named to the All-UFL team last week, has reunited with Mintze. The pair were teammates at Imhotep in 2015 when it became the first Public League school to win a state championship.
After competing against each other in the SEC, with Mintze at Vanderbilt, Durant at Missouri, then brief stints in the NFL, they’re playing for a chance to be in the UFL championship a decade after their state title win.
“We talk about it all the time, we’ve been going against each other for almost 10 years at this point,” Mintze said. “Every day, I line up on his side and we go at it. So it was a blessing to be a part of that [Imhotep] team, a supercompetitive team, that’s what I remember the most. … [Yasir], that’s somebody I consider a brother for life.”
The outside linebacker called Durant “the best tackle in this league” and has known his family since they were 16. Mintze, now 26, says he often spends time with Durant off the football field.
“I think it’s a beautiful thing. And this has happened to be a coincidence. We just happened to be in the division in college, the SEC East, we got to play against each other, and he just happened to come to this team [in 2024] and I line up on the same side he’s on,” Mintze said. “It’s always been interesting, just considering all the levels that we crossed paths at, and all I could do is be thankful because he gets me better, and hopefully he’ll say the same with me.”
Still chasing the NFL
Mintze had stops with the Denver Broncos and the Minnesota Vikings in 2021 and 2022, respectively. In Denver, he appeared in six games and finished with four tackles after being signed as an undrafted free agent. But he didn’t find a long-term home in either spot.
Those two years taught Mintze that “you never know when your moment’s coming,” and that taking care of his body is important because it’s “your moneymaker.” Playing for the Defenders the last three years has allowed his family to watch him play in person, something that was difficult to do when he was in Denver, then Minnesota.
But his overarching goal? Making it back into the NFL.
“I think I’ve shown that I can compete at the highest level this year, especially, so I’m just praying for an opportunity, and I’m going to make the most of that,” he said. “My immediate goal is to contribute to us winning a championship in the UFL. We had an opportunity in 2023 and we came short, but my immediate goal right now is to do everything I can to make sure we push past the finish line and we end up the best team in the UFL, because we are.”
After winning against the St. Louis Battlehawks on Sunday night, 36-18, in the XFL conference championship game, the Defenders have a spot in the UFL championship game against the Michigan Panthers. Mintze finished the game with two tackles and a sack, bringing his sack total to 6½ on the season, third-most in the UFL.
With Mintze and Durant on either side of the ball, there will be plenty of Philly flavor at America’s Center in St. Louis next Sunday.