Ja’Den McKenzie, the All-Delco running back from Springfield, always wanted to play Division 1 football and eventually play professionally, writes Matthew DeGeorge for the Daily Times.

So, after three years of football at West Chester University and a degree in criminal justice, he had a chance to rise from Division II to Division I. He took it.

“I wanted to play up,” McKenzie said. “That’s always been a goal for me since coming out of high school, really.”

Four games in, the grad student is the leading rusher for the University of Rhode Island’s nationally-ranked Rams, with 30 carries, 179 yards, and two touchdowns.

McKenzie also broke West Chester’s freshman rushing record with 917 yards in 2019..

He added 980 yards on 5.5 yards per carry in 2021, was third in the PSAC in yards, and first with 12 rushing touchdowns.

In his senior year at West Chester, McKenzie rose to eighth in rushing touchdowns in the program’s history with 30, 10^th in total touchdowns with 32, and 12^th in rushing yards at 2,603.

That was enough for McKenzie to seek a new challenge in the Rhode Island Rams.

Find out more about Ja’Den McKenzie in the Daily Times.