Growing up, Ford's family moved often as his father, Keith Ford Sr., served in the United States Marine Corps. This included a seven-year stay in Okinawa, Japan until his father retired and the family moved to Cypress, Texas. Ford attended Cypress Ranch High School, where he played football, basketball, and ran track.[1] As a senior, Ford rushed for 1,868 yards on 280 carries, scoring 24 touchdowns and participated in the Under Armour All-America Game. Ford led his Mustang team to a regional final playoff appearance, where they were defeated by the eventual state champion, Katy High School, by a score of 70-21. A five-star recruit, he was the third-ranked running back prospect in the nation and ultimately committed to the University of Oklahoma.[2]
College career
Oklahoma
As a freshman Ford appeared in ten games, rushing for 134 yards and one touchdown on 23 carries.[1] He rushed 71 times for 392 yards (third most on the team) and scored six total touchdowns in eight games as a sophomore, but lost his starting job to true freshman Samaje Perine while out due to injury.[3] Ford was suspended indefinitely from the football team due to academic and team rules violations.[4] Nine days later, Ford announced that he would be transferring and ultimately decided to move on to Texas A&M.[5]
Texas A&M
After sitting out one season due to NCAA transfer rules, Ford was the Aggies second-leading rusher with 669 yards as a redshirt junior.[6] As a senior, he rushed for 548 yards and led the team with 12 rushing touchdowns.[7][8] Over the course of his collegiate career, Ford rushed for 1,743 yards on 359 carries (4.9 yards per carry) and 24 touchdowns in 44 games.[9]
Professional career
Buffalo Bills
Ford signed with the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent on April 28, 2018.[10] He was cut by the Bills at the end of the preseason and subsequently re-signed to the team's practice squad on September 2, 2018.[11] Ford was promoted to the Bills' active roster on December 12, 2018 after an injury to starting running back LeSean McCoy.[12]
Ford made his NFL debut on December 16, 2018 in a 14–13 win against the Detroit Lions, rushing for a team-high 46 yards on 14 carries and catching a pass for seven yards.[13] He made his first career start the next week on December 23, 2018 in a 24–12 loss to the New England Patriots, again leading the team in rushing with 33 yards on seven carries and catching two passes for 14 yards.[14] As a rookie, Ford appeared in two games (one start) with 79 yards rushing on 21 carries and three receptions for 21 yards.[15]
On May 13, 2019, Ford was waived by the Bills.[16]
On August 6, 2019, Ford was claimed off waivers by the Green Bay Packers.[19] He was released on August 31, 2019.[20]
St. Louis BattleHawks
Ford signed with the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL on January 9, 2020.[21] Ford rushed ten times for 52 yards and two touchdowns before the 2020 XFL season was cancelled following growing concerns about the COVID-19 virus.[22] He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.[23]