Feleipe Franks
 Franks playing for Florida in November 2017 | |
| Arkansas Razorbacks – No. 13 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback |
| Class |  |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | December 22, 1997 Crawfordville, Florida |
| Height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Weight | 238 lb (108 kg) |
| Career history | |
| College | |
| Bowl games | |
| High school | Wakulla (Crawfordville, Florida) |
Feleipe Franks (born December 22, 1997) is an American football quarterback for the Arkansas Razorbacks. Franks began his college career with the Florida Gators, where he was the starting quarterback in 2017 and 2018. He suffered a season-ending injury in the third game of the 2019 season, after which he transferred to Arkansas.
Early years
Franks attended Wakulla High School in Crawfordville, Florida. During his high school career he passed for 6,867 yards and 81 touchdowns.[1] Franks was regarded as a four-star recruit by the major recruiting services, and was rated as the fifth-highest ranked pro-style quarterback and 54th-highest ranked prospect overall in the 247Sports Composite.[2] He originally committed to Louisiana State University (LSU) to play college football on June 1, 2014, but switched his commitment to the University of Florida on November 29, 2015.[3][4]
College career
Florida
2016–2017
Franks redshirted his first year at Florida in 2016. As a redshirt freshman in 2017, he was named the starting quarterback heading into Florida's season opener against Michigan, beating out 2016 starter Luke Del Rio and incoming Notre Dame transfer Malik Zaire.[5][6] Franks struggled in the game against Michigan, and was benched in favor of Zaire in the second half after completing 5 of 9 passes for 75 yards. The Gators went on to lose 33–17. In the Gators' next game on September 16, 2017 against Tennessee, Franks started the game and threw for 212 yards, including the game-winning 63-yard Hail Mary pass to receiver Tyrie Cleveland. Florida won the game 26–20 for Franks' first career win.[7] After a 3–1 start, the Gators' season derailed, as they lost six of their final seven games to finish with a disappointing 4–7 record and the school's second losing season since 1979.[8] Franks led the team in passing with 1,438 yards, nine touchdowns and eight interceptions.[9]
2018
As a redshirt sophomore in 2018, Franks was again named the starting quarterback ahead of the season's opening game, fighting off competition from fellow redshirt sophomore Kyle Trask and true freshman Emory Jones.[10] He threw for 219 yards and five touchdowns in Florida's 53–6 opening win over Charleston Southern. He set a career high with 284 passing yards to go along with two touchdowns and an interception in an October 13 win over Vanderbilt. Franks helped the Gators to a dramatic turnaround compared with the 2017 season, as they finished with a 10–3 record and a victory over Michigan in the Peach Bowl, ending the season at seventh in the final polls. Franks posted 2,457 passing yards, 24 passing touchdowns, six interceptions, and seven rushing touchdowns on the year. His 31 total touchdowns was tied for third in the Southeastern Conference.[11]
2019
In Florida's 2019 opener, Franks completed 17 of 27 passes for 254 yards, two touchdowns, two interceptions, and a rushing touchdown in a 24–20 win over rival Miami.[12] In the Gators' third game of the season against Kentucky, Franks was carted off the field with an apparent leg injury late in the third quarter.[13] Florida head coach Dan Mullen said after the game that team doctors believed Franks suffered a broken ankle and would likely miss the remainder of the season.[14] On December 1, 2019, Franks announced he would be leaving the Florida program.[15]
Arkansas
2020
On January 20, 2020, Franks announced he would be transferring to Arkansas.[16] On September 16, 2020, he was named one of four team captains for the season, and was shortly thereafter named the starting quarterback for the Razorbacks' season opener against Georgia.[17] On October 3, 2020, Franks led the Razorbacks in a 21–14 win against No. 16 Mississippi State, breaking Arkansas' 20-game SEC losing streak as well as their 15-game losing streak against ranked opponents.[18]
Baseball
On June 5, 2019, the Boston Red Sox of MLB drafted Franks with the 947th overall pick (in the 31st round) of the 2019 MLB draft. Franks, who played baseball in high school but not at Florida, indicated that he would continue his football career.[19]
College statistics
| Passing | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | GP | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yards | TDs | Int |
| 2017 | Florida | 11 | 125 | 229 | 54.6 | 1,438 | 9 | 8 |
| 2018 | Florida | 13 | 188 | 322 | 58.4 | 2,457 | 24 | 6 |
| 2019 | Florida | 4 | 54 | 71 | 76.1 | 698 | 5 | 3 |
| 2020 | Arkansas | 8 | 155 | 228 | 68.0 | 2,017 | 17 | 4 |
| College Totals | 36 | 522 | 850 | 61.4 | 6,610 | 55 | 21 | |
Personal life
Franks' older brother, Jordan, played tight end for the Cincinnati Bengals.[22]
References
- ^ "Comparing the top two Florida QB candidates this spring". gainesville.com. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
- ^ "Feleipe Franks, Wakulla High School, Pro-Style Quarterback". 247Sports.com. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
- ^ "Feleipe Franks commits to Gators". Orlando Sentinel. November 29, 2015. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
- ^ Chris Johnson (November 29, 2015). "Feleipe Franks commits to Florida: Gators flip ex-LSU QB recruit". SI.com. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
- ^ "Florida Gators suspend two more players ahead of season opener vs Michigan – Gators name QB Feleipe Franks Week 1 starter; RB, WR latest to be suspended". ESPN.com. August 30, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
- ^ "Gators QB Feleipe Franks will start season opener against Michigan". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
- ^ Rapp, Timothy. "Feleipe Franks' Hail Mary to Tyrie Cleveland Gives Florida Win over Tennessee". Bleacher Report. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
- ^ "Florida Gators Football Record By Year". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
- ^ "2017 Florida Gators Stats". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
- ^ Hutchins, Andy (August 27, 2018). "Florida vs. Charleston Southern: Feleipe Franks named Gators' starting QB". Alligator Army. Vox Media.
- ^ "2018 Southeastern Conference Year Summary". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
- ^ "Inconsistent Franks, No. 8 Florida rally to beat Miami 24-20". ESPN.com. Associated Press. August 24, 2019.
- ^ "No. 9 Florida rallies past Kentucky 29-21 in SEC opener". ESPN.com. Associated Press. September 14, 2019.
- ^ Sallee, Barrett (September 14, 2019). "Florida quarterback Feleipe Franks 'likely' out for season with dislocated ankle". CBS Sports.
- ^ Goldkamp, Thomas (December 1, 2019). "Feleipe Franks announces decision to forgo final year at UF". 247Sports.com.
- ^ Sallee, Barrett (January 20, 2020). "Former Florida quarterback Feleipe Franks announces transfer within conference to Arkansas". CBSSports.com.
- ^ Bratton, Michael Wayne (September 16, 2020). "Arkansas announces team captains for the 2020 season". Saturday Down South. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
- ^ News Services, ESPN (October 4, 2020). "Arkansas tops Mississippi State to end 20-game SEC skid". espn.com.
- ^ Abdeldaiem, Alaa (June 5, 2019). "Red Sox Select Florida QB Feleipe Franks in 31st Round of MLB Draft". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "Feleipe Franks". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
- ^ "Feleipe Franks". FoxSports.com. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
- ^ Hays, Chris (September 19, 2017). "UCF TE Jordan Franks thrilled to see brother's heroics in person". Orlando Sentinel. Tribune Publishing. Retrieved October 24, 2018.