Keith McCants Alvin Keith McCants ( born April 19 , 1968 ) is a former professional American football linebacker who played for six seasons in the National Football League for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , the Houston Oilers , and the Arizona Cardinals from 1990 to 1995 . He was selected by Tampa Bay in the 1st round ( 4th overall ) of the 1990 NFL Draft . High school career . McCants attended Murphy High School in Mobile , Alabama . As a senior , he amassed 130 tackles and 3 interceptions and was named to the 1986 1st Team All State Team . 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 . McCants was also on the school ' s basketball team , and helped lead them to the state tournament both his freshman and senior year . College career . 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 , AFCA , FWAA , FN , TSN ) and a 1989 Butkus Award Runner - up . He was a member of the 1990 Sugar Bowl team and was named the National Defensive Player of the Year in 1989 by CBS . In 1988 as a sophomore , McCants finished second on the team with 78 tackles , second only to Derrick Thomas . 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 ) . The Texas A & M game , dubbed the Hurricane Bowl , was originally to take place September 17 , but Alabama head coach Bill Curry refused to travel to College Station due to the threat posed by Hurricane Gilbert . The Tide ended the season with a win against Army in the 1988 Sun Bowl , in which McCants had a game - high 13 tackles . In 1989 , he led the Crimson Tide with 119 tackles and 4 sacks . After Alabama ' s victory against Tennessee , McCants was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Week by the league office for his 16 tackles and two sacks . Three weeks later , he was named " Sports Illustrated " defensive player of the week after totaling 18 tackles in an Alabama victory over LSU . In the last game of the 1989 regular season against Auburn , dubbed the Iron Bowl , McCants was named the CBS Player of the Game for Alabama with 18 tackles , an interception , and a forced fumble . 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 . Additionally , it was the second straight Iron Bowl in which McCants led the Tide in tackles , combining for 35 total between the 1988 and 1989 matchups . Even with the loss to Auburn , Alabama would still claim the title of 1989 SEC Champions , the school ’ s first conference title since 1981 . In the 1990 Sugar Bowl , # 7 ranked Alabama faced # 2 ranked Miami . Alabama lost the game 25 - 33 , and with the win Miami became the 1989 National Champions ; it would be McCants last collegiate game before declaring for the NFL Draft . Among a number of individual honors , McCants finished his college career with 197 total tackles , including 16 tackles for a loss . Additionally , McCants 119 tackles that year puts him tied for 6th all time for tackles in a single season by an Alabama player . The February 12th , 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 . In December 2010 , Bleacher Report named McCants the 33rd greatest player in Alabama Crimson Tide History . Professional career . 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 . Still , McCants strength and 4 . 51 second time in the 40 - yard dash guaranteed he would still be a high pick , if not # 1 . After being drafted fourth overall by the Buccaneers in 1990 , McCants signed a 5 year , $ 7 . 4 million deal with the team , including a then - record $ 2 . 5 million cash signing bonus . 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 . Have you ever seen a linebacker as big as he is ? I never have . He looks like an elephant and he runs like a deer " " . Buccaneers coach Ray Perkins , McCants ' former college coach , said that " He plays like he is never out of the play . That is an intensity level I like " . Floyd Peters was brought to the Bucs in 1991 , and converted McCants from a linebacker to defensive end . Although McCants resisted the change , Peters convinced him that with time he could become a success story along the lines of Chris Doleman , another Peters conversion . Although McCants was not fond of the move , he did have some success , as he led the Buccaneers in 1991 with 34 quarterback pressures and recorded 5 sacks , prompting Patrick Zier of the New York Times to remark " " considering the circumstances , McCants first year was a success . . . despite having to learn an entirely new position " " McCants continued to build upon his experience and was second on the Buccaneers in sacks ( 5 ) and quarterback pressures ( 21 ) in 1992 . Eventually , Tampa Bay cut him during their 1993 training camp . In 1993 while with the Houston Oilers , McCants stepped in to separate Buddy Ryan and Kevin Gilbride when Ryan punched Gilbride in the face following an Oilers fumble . That season , the Oilers would go on to finish 1st in the AFC Central Division , sending them to their seventh straight postseason , and McCants first . When asked what it meant to go to the playoffs , McCants replied , " " Let me tell you something , this is big - time . This is football . . . I haven ' t had a winning season since I left college , and it feels great to win again . " " In 1994 , McCants went to the Cardinals , following Buddy Ryan to Arizona after he was named head coach . 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 . In 1995 McCants scored his second NFL touchdown , on a fumble recovery against the Seattle Seahawks . Personal life . McCants and Emmitt Smith became friends while both playing in the SEC in college , with both being named to the 1989 All American team . Smith twice called McCants for advice leading up to his decision to announce for the 1990 Draft . According to her biography , while still a child WNBA player Lindsey Harding was inspired by a footrace with McCants to enter the world of sports . McCants recently launched his own website , www . keithmccants . com , which he plans on using as a platform to present his take on topical football and sports commentary . He now maintains a Twitter account and Facebook fan page as well . After leaving the NFL , McCants , who studied Criminal Justice while at the University of Alabama , became the first black marine police officer in the state of Alabama . Working for the Department of Conservation and Natural resources , Conservation Commissioner Riley Boykin Smith said at the time that " he hopes McCants will become the first of many minorities who take advantage of the opportunities to work for his department " . , McCants is also an avid scuba diver , having done dives all around the coast of Florida and the Caribbean . Media Appearances . He appeared in the 2012 episode " Broke , " part of ESPN ' s " 30 for 30 " series of sports documentaries . The premiere of " Broke " attracted 2 . 7 million viewers , an all - time ESPN record . McCants has become a semi - frequent guest on HuffPost Live , having appeared on the program five times . McCants was the guest for the September 21st , 2012 episode of " Dan Lebatard is Highly Questionable " . On September 24 , 2012 he appeared as a guest on the The Adam Carolla Show alongside Jeff Timmons of 98 Degrees . In December 2012 , McCants appeared on " Tailgating with Kato " , Kato Kaelin ' s sports - themed television talk show He has also appeared on WALA - TV Fox 10 a number of times , with segments including " The Interview " and " Studio 10 " . McCants was featured in sportswriter Gregg Easterbrook ' s book " The King of Sports : Football ' s Impact on America " released in October 2013 . Legal troubles . According to a May 15 , 2011 " Tampa Tribune " article , since 2002 McCants has had three convictions on charges of possessing drugs or drug paraphernalia . The article goes on to detail how , since his last new arrest in December 2010 , " McCants said he has been clean and doesn ' t believe he has a drug - addiction problem . "