Following the conclusion of the 2020 NFL Draft, Berry College (Rome, Ga) wide receiver Mason Kinsey signed a free agent deal with the Tennessee Titans. Kinsey is the only Division III player in 2020 to sign as a free agent and the first Vikings player in history to sign with an NFL team.
The Habersham Central High (Mt. Airy, Ga) product claimed his third consecutive All-Conference first-team honor and was named a D-III third-team All-American. The Demorest, Ga. native holds program records in nearly every receiving category, finishing his career with a Southern Athletic Association record 3,343 receiving yards and 50 receiving touchdowns. The 6-foot, 195-pound wideout led Berry to a 9-2 record and the Vikings’ fourth consecutive conference championship. For his efforts, Kinsey received an invitation to the prestigious East-West Shrine Bowl, the only D-III player selected.
During his freshman year in high school, due to a lack of reps, Kinsey was about to give up on football and focus on basketball. Georgia wide receiver Tavarres King, then a senior, stepped into the picture.
King persuaded Kinsey he had a future in football and should transition from running back to receiver. King, a former Habersham Central 4-star recruit, Georgia Gatorade Player of the Year and one of the SEC’s top receivers, saw something in Kinsey and proceeded to lend his advice and backing.
With King’s guidance and support, Kinsey went on to become a two-time all-region selection and Habersham Central’s second all-time leading receiver behind King. He declined a preferred walk-on offer to Mercer and enrolled in Berry to pursue a sports management degree and an opportunity to play football.
“He’s like my big brother and I love him to death,” Kinsey told Forbes.com of his relationship with King. “He has really helped me out and I definitely would not be the player I am today without him. I give a lot of props to him.”
Kinsey’s desire and hunger to put in the work makes him stand out and King took ealy notice of his work ethic.
“That’s what I love about Mason,” King told Forbes.com. “He is real hungry, real eager to learn and a hard-working kid.”
During his tenure at the University of Georgia, King caught 135 passes for 2,602 receiving yards and 21 touchdowns, good for ninth in career receptions, fourth in career yardage and third in career receiving touchdowns. A former fifth-round draft choice of the Denver Broncos, King played six years in the NFL for five teams, with his last stop in Minnesota in 2018. King knows the NFL scouting system.
“I would tell him all the time, if you are good, they will find you,” said King. “It’s all about making plays and making the most of his opportunities. Mason has done that to this point and I expect him to continue to do that.”
Read Forbes’ story on King and Kinsey here.