Overshadowed most of his career by heralded teammates Chase Daniel, Martin Rucker, Chase Coffman and Jeremy Maclin, Franklin has caught the attention of professional teams with his team-first attitude, blazing speed and naturally soft hands. The nephew of former Cincinnati Bengals standout wide receiver Darnay Scott, Franklin credits Scott with inspiring him to pursue football.

Franklin would go on to start 36 games during his career with the Tigers, seeing action as a slot receiver and at the "X" position. He placed his name in the school record books, as both his 143 receptions and 2,125 yards gained rank fourth in Missouri history.

Franklin began his high school career at Beaumont High School, but transferred to Vashon High before his junior campaign, which had a better basketball program. On the football field, he earned All-State, All-Metro and All-League honors as a senior, as he was ranked 40th among the nation's wide receiver prospects by Rivals.com, who ranked him as the eighth-best overall prospect in Missouri.

That season, Franklin grabbed 37 passes for 907 yards and 17 touchdowns to help the squad claim the Class 4A district title. As a sophomore at Beaumont High, he had 367 yards receiving and nine touchdowns and added four interceptions on defense, as he was named All-League. A solid basketball player who lettered in that sport at both schools, he was given a nickname of "Helicopter" by his friends for his high-flying aerial antics on the court.

Franklin enrolled at Missouri in 2004, seeing action in 11 games at the "X" receiver position behind Brad Ekwerekwu. He managed just six catches, but they were good for 174 yards (29.0 avg) and a touchdown. He shifted to slot receiver in 2005, starting all but the Nebraska game. He gained 413 yards on 40 receptions (10.3 avg) with two scores and rushed eight times for 17 yards (2.1 avg).

The 2006 season saw Franklin take over at the "X" receiver position. He was well on his way to earning conference postseason honors, but he landed on his right shoulder making a first quarter dive at a pass vs. Iowa State, suffering a torn labrum that required surgery. The injury forced him to sit out the team's final two games, finishing third on the squad with 48 catches for 829 yards (17.3 avg) and six touchdowns.

As a senior, Franklin was named All-Big 12 Conference honorable mention. He started all 14 games at "X" receiver, coming up with a career-high 49 receptions for 709 yards (14.5 avg) and four touchdowns.

In 48 games at Missouri, Franklin started 36 contests. He ranks fourth in school history with 143 catches for 2,125 yards (14.9 avg) and 13 touchdowns. He rushed nine times for 9 yards, fielded one punt for no return yardage and scored 82 points.

Positives: Has the rare sized frame teams look for - minimal body fat (7.2%), natural muscle thickness throughout, long limbs, large, soft hands, outstanding leaping ability, thick thighs and calves, tight waist, hips and abdomen and room on his frame to carry at least another 15 pounds of bulk with no loss in quickness … Has the sudden burst to get a clean release off the snap and valid hand strength to defeat the press … Smooth runner with excellent timed speed, showing the ability to drop his weight when making cuts, displaying good body control throughout his running stride … Shows good instincts and awareness on the field, quickly finding the soft areas to settle under … Called by QB Chase Daniel the team's most alert receiver, as more than 20 percent of his catches came after breaking off his routes and coming back to help when the pocket was pressured the last two years … Has really improved his competitiveness the last few years, displaying more fire than he did earlier in his career, displaying true courage and a desire to make plays after the catch, and will compete for the ball in a crowd … Took a while to adjust to college life and the staff felt that he had a bad attitude and complained a lot when he first entered the Missouri program, but has completely changed and has consistently improved his work in the weight room and on the practice field … Has become a vocal leader who will get in his teammates' faces … Has a good burst and shows good quickness after the catch, utilizing effective head fakes and wiggle to make the initial tackler miss … Possesses quick feet that allow him to change directions swiftly, as he has the balance to drop his pads and show crispness in and out of his cuts … Shows good quickness from scrimmage vs. press coverage, demonstrating a strong hand strike to surprise a lethargic defender … Has a very smooth release off the line, showing an ability to elude bump-and-run coverage with quick feet, good fakes and a sharp burst … Drops his weight well while making cuts and gets back to the ball very efficiently, doing a fine job of slipping underneath coverages and uses his body well to shield defenders from the ball … Demonstrates good field awareness and body control along the sideline, getting his feet down in bounds … Looks for the yard marker and takes good angles as a second-level cut blocker … Even with his valid speed, he doesn't really blow past defenders, but shows enough burst to stretch the field and is best when he can find holes in the defense and settle in … Displays good, soft hands and the ability to pluck high and away from his frame, as he can also catch the deep, over-the-shoulder balls with his hands extended away from his frame … Demonstrates good body control while adjusting to low balls and balls thrown behind him and has no problems sacrificing his body to go vertical (suffered a torn labrum stretching out for the ball vs. Iowa State in 2006, but says he will do it again, if needed) … Reacts well to the ball in flight and while he is not really a shifty receiver, he will pick up yards after the catch with head fakes and the valid speed to escape … Shows good toughness while battling for extra yards … Threatens the deep secondary consistently, as he has the timed speed to gobble up the cushion and get behind the opponent before the defensive back has a chance to recover … Willing to compete for jump balls or combat defenders in a crowd … Not really excited about blocking at the X's, but has good angle concept and field awareness to cut block.

Negatives: Has a confirmed learning disability that requires extra assistance with school work … Will need extra reps in practice due to poor mental retention … Has valid speed to stretch the field, but needs to refine his pattern running, as he rounds off his routes, especially double moves and slants (more a product of what the system asks from him) … Willing to compete for the ball in a crowd, but does not show the playing strength to be an effective receiver on short routes, as he will get knocked off shallow crossing routes by linebackers and drops a few balls due to a lack of concentration when working in a crowd (has courage, just tends to get distracted when he hears the defender's foot steps) … Will compete for the ball in a crowd, but not always, as he has pulled up on short balls in traffic when he thinks he has no chance of getting to it … Lacks enthusiasm and playing strength as an in-line blocker and gets warded off at the point of attack, but is adequate as a cut blocker in the second level … Has matured, but openly complained and was a bit of a problem to handle his first few years in the program (comes from a rough background and had a chip on his shoulder when he arrived on campus) … Has good cutting ability in the open, but on shorter routes he takes too long coming out of his breaks … When he keeps his hands active, he can ward off the jam, but when his chest is exposed defenders are quick to ward him off and knocked him off his route … Has the speed to elude, but needs to be more elusive in his patterns, as he tends to run right into a crowd … Has natural hands, but will revert to trapping the ball or letting it into his body … Needs to secure the ball better before turning up field to reduce costly turnovers.

Compares To: RODDY WHITE-Atlanta … Like White, Franklin has the valid speed to threaten the deep secondary, but is not the greatest route runner. He needs to be more elusive after the catch, rather than rely on his timed speed to help him escape. He will lose concentration at times and is prone to trapping the ball, but seems to work better on attacking the deep third of the zone than working in a crowd. He has a smooth release and gets into his route quickly, when he uses his hand to defeat the press, but does not do it all the time. He has courage underneath, but despite looking the part, he does not use his strength to stop defenders from knocking him around in a crowd. He has a verified learning disability and will need time to digest a playbook. Much like White, it will be a few years before this kid will settle into a routine at the next level, but with his speed a patient coach could unearth a nice second-day talent.

2006: Missed the second half of the Texas A&M game (10/14) with a thigh bruise … Sat out the Kansas (11/25) and Oregon State (12/29) games after undergoing surgery to repair a right shoulder labrum tear that he suffered in the first quarter vs. Iowa State (11/18).

2007: Suffered a hip pointer vs. Illinois (9/01) in the season opener … Saw limited action vs. Iowa State (10/27) and missed the second half vs. Texas A&M (11/10) with back spasms.

Campus: 4.38 in the 40-yard dash … 241-pound bench press … Bench pressed 225 pounds two times … 441-pound squat … 266-pound hang clean … 40 ½-inch vertical jump … 10'11" broad jump … Did 14 pull-ups … 32 ½-inch arm length … 9 ¾-inch hands … Right-handed … 11/48 Wonderlic score.

Combine: 4.37 in the 40-yard dash … 1.53 10-yard dash … 2.53 20-yard dash … 34.5-inch vertical jump … Did not do the 225-pound bench press.

Attended Vashon (St. Louis, Mo.) High School as a junior and senior, playing football for head coach Reginald Ferguson … Attended Beauford (St. Louis, Mo.) High as a freshman and sophomore … Earned All-State, All-Metro and All-League honors as a senior, as he was ranked 40th among the nation's wide receiver prospects by Rivals.com, who ranked him as the eighth-best overall prospect in Missouri … That season, Franklin grabbed 37 passes for 907 yards and 17 touchdowns to help the squad claim the Class 4A district title … As a sophomore at Beaumont High, he had 367 yards receiving and nine touchdowns and also added four interceptions on defense, as he was named All-League … A solid basketball player who lettered in that sport at both schools, he was given a nickname of "Helicopter" by his friends for his high-flying aerial antics on the court.

General Education major, with a minor in Sports Management … Nephew of former Cincinnati Bengals receiver Darnay Scott … Son of William Franklin, Sr. and Tejauna Roach … Born 10/13/85 … Resides in St. Louis, Missouri.