Although football players had been enrolling early at
Bowl Championship Series (BCS) programs for several years, Grady was the first University of Michigan football player to do so. In subsequent years several other players followed his lead, including
Justin Boren and
Carlos Brown the following year.
Freshman year (2005) As a freshman in 2005, Grady rushed 121 times for 483 yards and five touchdowns as a backup and injury replacement for starter
Mike Hart, who only played in eight games due to injuries. One of his touchdowns gave Michigan an 18–12 lead in the third quarter of the
Ohio State game. In the end Grady made two starts at tailback, and was one of only six freshman to have played for the
2005 Michigan Wolverines football team. In
2006, he entered the season as Hart's primary backup, ahead of senior Jerome Jackson, freshmen
Brandon Minor, and
Carlos Brown on the
depth chart. On opening day, Grady's five carries were second on the team, but some questioned why his total was so low. As the season progressed, he remained second on the depth chart, seeing limited playing time due to injuries as well as starter Mike Hart being healthy and starting all thirteen games.
Junior year (2007) Prior to spring football practice in 2007, Grady switched his jersey number from 3 to 24, his high school number and the day on which he was born. Later that year he was converted to fullback. He would miss the entire
2007 season recovering from his injuries; by making use of a
redshirt year, however, he was able to not use up a year of eligibility. During spring football, Grady was still recovering from injuries. In July 2008, Grady was pulled over while driving in
Wyoming, Michigan with a
blood alcohol content of .281, more than three times the state's legal limit. He originally pleaded not guilty. Grady began the
2008 season on suspension from the
2008 Wolverines, while Brown, Minor and freshmen
Michael Shaw and
Sam McGuffie fought for time. During the season, Grady pleaded guilty to
misdemeanor drunken driving. With both Brown and Minor nursing injuries, Sam McGuffie was tentatively penciled into the starting position on the depth chart. In the end, Grady only accumulated 33 yards rushing for the season.
Senior (redshirt) year (2009) In the spring of 2009, Grady was accused by court officials of not adhering to his probation reporting requirements and not meeting the 24 hours of community service requirement of his probation, among other violations. As a result, he was jailed for seven days in May 2009. Kevin's brother,
Kelvin Grady, was a
point guard on the
Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team before transferring to the Michigan football team after the
2008–09 season. On October 17, 2009, the two became the first pair of brothers to score a touchdown in the same game for Michigan as far as could be told by the school's record books. Over the course of the season, Kevin started three games at fullback for the
2009 Wolverines. He compiled 80 yards rushing on 10 carries bringing his career total to 783 yards on 200 carries and 10 touchdowns. He also made 5
receptions bringing his career total to 20 for 150 yards. ==Personal life==