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Here is a flashback on Will Franklin, how he got to BU,
and why nobody else (except Jim Les) seemed to see the talent the kid has!
Will Franklin, #4, 6'0", 185 lb (maybe a little more now)
Alief Hastings HS in Houston, and Kilgore TX Junior College.
Born April 5, 1985, Will did not play on the varsity until his junior year in high school.
As a junior he got very limited playing time. Then as a senior, he blossomed and not only was he
the starting point guard for Hastings HS, he had a great senior season. He led his team to a 34-5 finish,
and all the way to the regional finals.
His senior averages were 12ppg, 7 apg, 3.7 steals per game.
He was an all state selection and
a starter in the Texas High School Coaches Association All-Star game.
Will did not get recruited much at all, in part due to the abundance of other highly talented kids in the Houston area.
He went to Murray State College in Tishimingo, Okla., a junior college.
His coach there moved Will to shooting guard and Will had a good year averaging 15 ppg as a freshman
and earning 2nd team all conference.
As a sophomore, he transferred to Kilgore College (TX), and was one of only two sophomores on a nearly all-freshman team.
Will was again switched in positions and his coach at Kilgore wanted Will to run the point and
be a pass-first guard and not so much a scorer.
Will again responded with a fine season, leading Kilgore to a 20-10 record, scoring 8.4ppg, 4.5 assists per game, 2.9rpg.
When Will was in high school he was never listed as a college prospect by Rivals. He was truly "under the radar".
But once he was at Kilgore, he started to show up as a unrated prospect.
The only schools that were pursuing Will were
Bradley
Campbell
Stephen F. Austin
TCU
Texas-Pan American
Gardner-Webb
Utah Valley State
and several smaller schools.
Not until mid-April of 2005, very late in Will Franklin's sophomore year at Kilgore, did Jim Les get onto Will's trail, and only because of the unexpected departure of Mike Rembert left a scholarship available.
But BU wanted Will and pushed very hard to get him to come for a campus visit.
Some time after Will made a campus visit to Bradley, he committed to Bradley.
Here are some older articles on Will from his junior college days:
Here are the earlliest reports on BradleyFans about Will
And some observation of how Will played at the RiverPlex summer league before getting to campus
and why nobody else (except Jim Les) seemed to see the talent the kid has!
Will Franklin, #4, 6'0", 185 lb (maybe a little more now)
Alief Hastings HS in Houston, and Kilgore TX Junior College.
Born April 5, 1985, Will did not play on the varsity until his junior year in high school.
As a junior he got very limited playing time. Then as a senior, he blossomed and not only was he
the starting point guard for Hastings HS, he had a great senior season. He led his team to a 34-5 finish,
and all the way to the regional finals.
His senior averages were 12ppg, 7 apg, 3.7 steals per game.
He was an all state selection and
a starter in the Texas High School Coaches Association All-Star game.
Will did not get recruited much at all, in part due to the abundance of other highly talented kids in the Houston area.
He went to Murray State College in Tishimingo, Okla., a junior college.
His coach there moved Will to shooting guard and Will had a good year averaging 15 ppg as a freshman
and earning 2nd team all conference.
As a sophomore, he transferred to Kilgore College (TX), and was one of only two sophomores on a nearly all-freshman team.
Will was again switched in positions and his coach at Kilgore wanted Will to run the point and
be a pass-first guard and not so much a scorer.
Will again responded with a fine season, leading Kilgore to a 20-10 record, scoring 8.4ppg, 4.5 assists per game, 2.9rpg.
When Will was in high school he was never listed as a college prospect by Rivals. He was truly "under the radar".
But once he was at Kilgore, he started to show up as a unrated prospect.
The only schools that were pursuing Will were
Bradley
Campbell
Stephen F. Austin
TCU
Texas-Pan American
Gardner-Webb
Utah Valley State
and several smaller schools.
Not until mid-April of 2005, very late in Will Franklin's sophomore year at Kilgore, did Jim Les get onto Will's trail, and only because of the unexpected departure of Mike Rembert left a scholarship available.
But BU wanted Will and pushed very hard to get him to come for a campus visit.
Some time after Will made a campus visit to Bradley, he committed to Bradley.
Here are some older articles on Will from his junior college days:
Here are the earlliest reports on BradleyFans about Will
And some observation of how Will played at the RiverPlex summer league before getting to campus
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