Keys led the 1960 Colorado State team in rushing yards and total offense.

[5][6] His first store opened in January 1967 and at its peak, All Pro Fried Chicken, had 150 franchises and was run by Keys as a family business.

[4] In September 1970 he entered into a joint venture with Kentucky Fried Chicken to take a 50 percent stake in 6 stores in the Detroit area, as a condition to this agreement he was required to liquidate all of his All Pro Fried Chicken restaurants, most of which were sold to the franchisees.

In 1982 due to increased competition the stores had run into trouble and to secure their long-term future KFC offered him to swap these six restaurants for four anywhere else in the country under the normal terms of a franchisee to which he agreed choosing four restaurants based in Albany.

In 1971 he successfully lobbied Burger King to award the contract for its first inner city restaurant construction to a Black-owned business.