Barkevious Mingo

Early years

Mingo was born in Belle Glade, Florida. He attended West Monroe High School in West Monroe, Louisiana, where he was a letterman in football and track. He played football for the West Monroe Rebels team under head coach Don Shows. As a junior, he tallied 55 tackles to go with six sacks and 12 tackles for loss, leading this to be named All-State in Class 5A. As a senior in 2008, he was a 5A first-team All-state selection, after recording 59 tackles to go with seven tackles for loss and four sacks in helping lead West Monroe High School to the state championship game. He also added four forced fumbles and recovered seven fumbles. He played in the 2009 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

Also a standout track & field athlete, Mingo was a state qualifier as a sprinter. At the 2008 Region I-5A Meet, he took gold in the 400-meter dash, with a PR of 48.92, and ran the lead leg on the West Monroe 4 × 200m and 4 × 400m squads, helping them capture the state title in both events. At the 2009 LHSAA Outdoor State T&F Championships, he took 5th in the 200-meter dash, recording a career-best time of 21.85 seconds, and finished 6th in the 400-meter dash, with a time of 49.54 seconds.

According to Rivals.com and Scout.com, Mingo was four-star college recruiting prospect. He was rated as the No. 6 strong side linebacker by Scout.com and the No. 9 by Rivals.com. He was a member of the Rivals 250 and Scout 300. He was rated as the No. 5 best athlete among linebackers by Rivals.com. He was rated as the No. 3 player in the state of Louisiana by SuperPrep and the No. 8 by Rivals.com.

College career

Mingo attended Louisiana State University, and played for coach Les Miles's LSU Tigers football team from 2009 to 2012. He was redshirted in 2009. As a redshirt freshman in 2010, he started one of 13 games, recording 35 tackles and 3.5 sacks. As a sophomore in 2011, Mingo was a Second Team All-SEC selection after recording 47 tackles and 8 sacks. In 2011, he contributed to LSU's successful SEC Championship season. As a junior in 2012, he played in all 13 games with 10 starts, and earned Second Team All-SEC honors after recording 38 tackles, 8.5 tackles for a loss, 4.5 quarterback sacks, and a team-high 12 quarterback hurries.

On January 7, 2013, Mingo announced he would forego his senior season and enter the 2013 NFL Draft. He was one of 10 LSU Tiger underclassmen to declare for the draft that year.

Cleveland Browns

Mingo was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the first round with the sixth overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. He was the third defensive end to be selected in the draft, after Dion Jordan and Ezekiel Ansah.

In the second preseason game against the Detroit Lions, Mingo suffered a bruised lung and was hospitalized. Overall, in 2013, Mingo played 15 games with 42 tackles, five sacks, and four passes defended. In 2014, Mingo racked up 42 tackles and two sacks in 15 games. Mingo began the 2015 season as the starting outside linebacker but was relegated to back-up duties after a Week 2 win against the Tennessee Titans where he finished with three tackles. It was reported during the offseason, Mingo gained 20 lbs. for his position. On May 2, 2016, the Browns decided not pick up his fifth year option.

New England Patriots

On August 25, 2016, the Browns traded Mingo to the New England Patriots in exchange for a 2017 fifth-round draft pick.

On February 5, 2017, Mingo was part of the Patriots team that won Super Bowl LI. In the game, the Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons by a score of 34-28 in the first Super Bowl in history to go to overtime.

Indianapolis Colts

On March 9, 2017, Mingo signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Indianapolis Colts.

Personal life

Mingo is the son of Hugh Mingo and Barbara Johnson. He has two older brothers, Hugh III and Hughtavious Mingo, and two younger brothers, Malik and LaDarian Johnson. His unusual first name was created by his mother, adding the first three letters of her first name to a name she liked, Kevious.