« Football 2020-21

Andre Mintze

School
Vanderbilt Univerity
Position
LB
Major
Medicine, Health and Society; Cinema and Media Arts
Andre Mintze

Classroom

Academically, Mintze earned his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt as a double major in medicine, health and society and cinema arts.

He is pursuing a master’s degree in medicine, health and society to help him prepare for life after football. He is also a three-time Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll selection.

Character

Mintze’s rise from a freshman who endured punishing workouts but spent the entire season on the sidelines to a team captain, anchor of the defense and recognized scholar-athlete is truly an inspiration to all. He arrived at Vanderbilt in August of 2016 and eagerly participated in the team’s practices throughout the campaign without playing a down. That season, the Commodores captured six wins, including the final two regular-season tilts, and earned a Camping World Independence Bowl trip.

Mintze finally got on the field during the 2017 campaign and has played in 36 of Vandy’s last 40 games.

He has worked himself into a three-time Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll selection and a team captain for the 2019 and 2020 campaigns.

He has been a diligent worker and an inspirational leader, continually buying into the team aspect and providing younger Commodores with a role model.

He has also demonstrated numerous times his sense of responsibility to the team and program by completing media interviews throughout the season. He has always made time to complete such tasks while balancing them with other football, academic and community responsibilities.

Community

During his time in Nashville, Mintze has given back to the Vanderbilt community primarily through his annual Dancing Dores philanthropy program, a partnership between Dance Marathon, which is an organization that raises funds for the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, and Vanderbilt’s Athletic Department. All revenue generated goes to the hospital.

Mintze has also been a two-year volunteer with Impact with Backpacks, interacting with inner-city youths and filling and distributing backpacks with school supplies for the upcoming school year.

During the summer of 2018, Mintze was an intern with the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, working in the development department and helping coordinate fundraising events.

The previous summer, in 2017, Mintze served as a volunteer with the Vanderbilt Recreation and Wellness Center CampVandy, overseeing 10-15 youngsters during arts and crafts, bowling and tag.

Competition

Mintze has played in 37 career games for Vanderbilt, making 13 starts. He has totaled 59 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, five quarterback pressures and two forced fumbles. Mintze has been a team captain the last two years and centered the defense in each campaign.

During the 2019 campaign, Mintze booked a career-high 40 tackles with 7.5 TFL and 4.5 sacks. He tallied a season-high six tackles against UNLV and Missouri and registered a personal-best 2.0 sacks at Ole Miss. His 2.0 tackles for loss against Missouri in 2019 helped the Commodores to a 21-14 victory against the nationally-ranked Tigers. He finished the campaign strong, recording at least three tackles in seven of his final eight appearances.

Mintze earned 10 tackles in 2018 and started his first game against Tennessee State. He booked his first collegiate sack in the Texas Bowl against Baylor to end the campaign. During his first season on the field, in 2017, Mintze played in 11 games and booked five tackles.