Additionally, McCants was named to the 1986 Alabama Sports Writers Association's Super 12 team, composed of the top 12 high school football players in the state.
[1] McCants was also on the school's basketball team, and helped lead them to the state tournament both his freshman and senior year.
[2] A college standout at the University of Alabama, McCants had a number of accolades bestowed upon him including being named a 1989 Unanimous First-team All-American (AP, UPI, WCFF,[3] AFCA, FWAA, FN, TSN) and a 1989 Butkus Award Runner-up.
Additionally, McCants recorded the most tackles on the team four times during the 1988 regular season, against Tennessee (8), Mississippi State (14), Auburn (17), and Texas A&M (11).
After Alabama's victory against Tennessee, McCants was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Week by the league office[10] for his 16 tackles and two sacks.
A high point for the Tide from the game was McCants' display of "incredible athletic talent" in running down Auburn receiver Shane Wasden from behind and preventing a touchdown.
[12] The February 12, 1990, issue of Sports Illustrated ran an article that focused on McCants titled "The Young and the Restless", that profiled his and other college juniors' eventually successful attempts to declare for the NFL Draft before their senior season, a then-uncommon practice.
[13][14] In December 2010, Bleacher Report named McCants the 33rd greatest player in Alabama Crimson Tide History.
`BAMA STAR WEIGHS THE PROS, CONS McCants was for a time expected to be the first player selected in the 1990 NFL draft, but the Atlanta Falcons backed off due to rumors of knee trouble and allegations that his family had been paid money by a sports agent while he was still in college.
[19][20] A highly touted prospect, McCants rookie card by Score quoted former Kentucky head coach Jerry Claiborne as saying "Keith is one of the best football players I have ever seen.
[28] That season, the Oilers would go on to finish first in the AFC Central Division, sending them to their seventh straight postseason, and McCants's first.
In a game against the Chicago Bears, McCants picked off Steve Walsh and ran back a 46-yard touchdown; it was the Cardinals' longest interception return of the season.
He interviewed guests Cornelius Bennett,[32] Robert Jones, Stylez G. White, George Teague,[33] Willie Anderson,[34] Kato Kaelin and Ron Jeremy.
[35] According to his biography, while still a child WNBA player Lindsey Harding was inspired by a footrace with McCants to enter the world of sports.
The premiere of Broke, which detailed the high rates of bankruptcy and financial trouble amongst professional athletes, attracted 2.7 million viewers, an all-time ESPN record.
[49] McCants was featured in sportswriter Gregg Easterbrook's book The King of Sports: Football's Impact on America released in October 2013.