Zakhari Franklin (born October 15, 2000) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

wide receiver for the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford. The first was the football team, which began play in 1893. Originally known as th ...

. He previously played for the

UTSA Roadrunners The UTSA Roadrunners is a collegiate athletic program that represents the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). The UTSA Roadrunners are also commonly referred to as "UTSA", "Roadrunners", "Runners", “The Meep Meeps”, or simply “The Bi ...

Early life and high school

Franklin grew up in

Cedar Hill, Texas Cedar Hill is a city in Dallas and Ellis counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is located approximately southwest of downtown Dallas and is situated along the eastern shore of Joe Pool Lake and Cedar Hill State Park. Per the 2020 United States ...

and attended

Cedar Hill High School Cedar Hill High School (CHHS) is a comprehensive public high school located in the city of Cedar Hill, Texas (USA) in Dallas County and is classified as a 6A school by the UIL. It is a part of the Cedar Hill Independent School District located i ...

. caught 23 passes for 687 yards and nine touchdowns. Franklin committed to play

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the

University of Texas at San Antonio The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) is a public research university in San Antonio, Texas. With over 34,000 students across its four campuses spanning 758 acres, UTSA is the largest university in San Antonio and the eighth-largest by ...

(UTSA).

College career

Franklin began his college career playing for the

He had 38 catches for 491 yards and three touchdowns during his freshman season. Franklin was named honorable mention All-

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are l ...

after catching 49 passes for 694 yards and seven touchdowns as a sophomore. He was named first team All-Conference USA at the end of his junior season after setting school records with 81 catches, 1,027 receiving yards, and 12 touchdown receptions. As a senior, Franklin reset his program records with 94 receptions for 1,136 yards and 15 touchdowns. After the season, he entered the NCAA transfer portal and utilize the extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes who played in the 2020 season due to the coronavirus pandemic. Franklin ultimately transferred to Ole Miss.

References

External links

UTSA Roadrunners bioOle Miss Rebels bio
2000 births Living people American football wide receivers UTSA Roadrunners football players Ole Miss Rebels football players Players of American football from Texas People from Cedar Hill, Texas {{widereceiver-stub