Texas prep teammates accept Nebraska offers

LINCOLN - Tom Brooks has coached several NCAA Division I-A football players in his three years at Ozen High School in Beaumont, Texas.

Nebraska, however, never showed interest.

Until this season.

The Husker coaches were the first to offer scholarships to two of Brooks' finest, and both responded by orally accepting.

Wallace Franklin, a 6-foot-3, 185-pound wide receiver, and Calvin Mickens a 6-2, 195-pound defensive back, become the seventh and eighth members of Nebraska's 2005 recruiting class.

Franklin said he and Mickens informed Nebraska defensive line coach John Blake of their decision on Thursday.

"This is the first time we've ever heard from Nebraska," said Brooks, who had three Division I-A players last season and about five or six prospects this year.

Franklin and Mickens both play wide receiver in Brooks' I-formation offense.

Franklin caught 27 passes for 340 yards and eight touchdowns last season, and Mickens had 21 catches for 270 yards and five touchdowns.

"They didn't start off as starters last year," Brooks said, "but by the third or fourth game, they had made such a huge impact on what we were doing."

Brooks said Franklin's speed - he's been timed at 4.39 seconds in the 40-yard dash - enabled the offense to open things up. Franklin also qualified for three events last spring in the state track meet.

"He can really fly," Brooks said, noting Franklin will also return kickoffs this season.

Franklin said Blake was the first coach to offer him a scholarship.

"He liked the way I caught the ball," Franklin said, "and how I broke away downfield after I caught it."

Mickens, while not as fast, is a little bigger and more physical, Brooks said. He also plays cornerback but will likely be a candidate to play safety in college.

"We play a lot of cover-two, because he's more of a linebacker," Brooks said. "When he brings it, he brings the force."

Ozen qualified for the state playoffs two years ago but missed the playoffs by one game last season, finishing 6-4.

Franklin, a three-star athlete in Rivals.com's five-star rating system, is ranked as the nation's No. 62 wide receiver by the recruiting web site.

Mickens, also a three-star athlete, isn't ranked at his position.