Jonathon Mincy sets aside Iron Bowl rivalry to hang with heart transplant patient
Jonathon Mincy set aside the Iron Bowl rivalry for a really awesome cause.
It’s often said that rivalries know no bounds. And while the Iron Bowl is arguably the fiercest rivalry in college football – maybe all sports – it’s nice to see when folks from both sides of it lay down their arms for a greater cause.
Take Jonathon Mincy, for example. The former Auburn Tigers cornerback, who went undrafted this past May, is in Atlanta (Flowery Branch, to be exact) working out with the Falcons in hopes of catching on with the team. While not on the field scrapping for his career, Mincy caught wind of a story that struck him a certain way: a young man who had recently turned 18 was forced to spend his birthday in jail. The kicker being that the patient, named D’Sean, will be a freshman at Alabama this coming fall.
Battle lines and alma maters be damned, Mincy contacted D’Sean to give him a b-day mulligan. The two paired up to take in some video games and football discussion. On its Facebook page, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta posted the following sweet shot of Mincy and D’Sean chopping it up.
"When the Atlanta Falcons’ Jonathon Mincy learned D’Sean had spent his 18th birthday in the hospital waiting on a heart transplant, he gave him a birthday re-do. The pair recently spent an afternoon together, playing video games and talking football strategy. In just a few weeks, D’Sean—and his new, healthy heart—will head to the University of Alabama as an incoming freshman!"
We too often hear about Tammy in Clanton, Phyllis from Mulga, and the Harvey Updykes of the Iron Bowl. It’s nice to see a softer side to the rivalry – a little real-world perspective, if you will – from somebody who actually had a stake in each contest, no less.
[AL]
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