Austin Franklin facts for kids

Austin Franklin was born on December 6, 1992. He is a former American football player who played as a wide receiver. He played college football at New Mexico State University. Later, he played for the St. Louis Rams in the National Football League (NFL). He also played in the Arena Football League (AFL) for the LA Kiss.

Early Life and High School Sports

Austin Franklin grew up in Dallas, Texas. He was a talented athlete at Kimball High School. He played both football and basketball.

In basketball, he was named the Most Valuable Player for his district. He was also a key player on the team that won the 2011 4A UIL Basketball State Championship.

For football, Franklin played many roles. He was a wildcat quarterback, a wide receiver, and returned punts and kickoffs. A wildcat quarterback is a player who takes the snap directly from the center, often to run the ball.

College Football Career

Franklin chose to play college football at New Mexico State University. Other top schools like Utah and Wyoming also wanted him to play for them.

In 2012, during his second year, Franklin had an amazing season. He caught 74 passes for 1,245 yards. He was named to the First-team All-WAC team. The WAC is a college sports conference.

He was also one of ten players nominated for the Bilentnikoff Award. This award goes to the best wide receiver in college football. Franklin was also named an Honorable Mention All-American by SI.com. This means he was recognized as one of the best players in the country.

Even after missing four games due to grades, he still caught 52 passes for 670 yards. Over his college career, he had 160 catches, 2,439 receiving yards, and 19 touchdowns. He decided to leave college early to try for the 2014 NFL Draft.

Professional Football

After college, Austin Franklin entered the NFL Draft. He was not chosen by a team during the draft. This made him an undrafted free agent. He later played for the St. Louis Rams in 2014.

He also played in the Arena Football League (AFL) for the LA Kiss in 2015. The AFL is a different kind of football played indoors on a smaller field. He also played for other teams like the Texas Stealth and the Wichita Falls Nighthawks.