'It was personal': Keenan Leachman on beating Southern

Alcorn State University defensive back Keenan Leachman described his epic performance against Southern University as “personal.”

The Braves defeated the Jaguars in an embarrassing 44-21 blowout on Saturday, Nov. 4. The two teams entered the game with the same overall and conference record, but Alcorn State proved they were on a different tier.

Leachman was a major part of the blowout. The Northwestern State transfer played out of his mind, racking up two interceptions, a forced fumble, and three tackles. Leachman returned one interception for an 88-yard touchdown. He also scored on the forced fumble; the defensive back helped tackle the ball carrier, and in one swift motion, he ripped the ball away, tucked it under his arm, and ran for a 27-yard touchdown. On Southern's next offensive possession, he corralled a tipped ball for the interception.

“[It was] crazy. The game of my life, the best game I've ever played in my life,” Leachman told reporters. “It was very personal playing against my hometown team. They didn't recruit me out of high school, so it was personal, for sure. I've thought about [playing Southern] since high school. This game has been scheduled on my list since high school.”

The Baton Rouge, LA native was named the FedEx Ground FCS National Defensive Player of the Week for his outstanding performance. Leachman, however, was sure he would have a good day based on the film.

“They ran a lot of the same stuff,” he said. “If it worked, then they were going to keep running it. They are repetitive with a lot of things, so that's how we knew what they were going to do.”