PHILADELPHIA – University of Pennsylvania George A. Munger Head Coach of Football Ray Priore has announced the hiring of Eric Franklin as a corner backs coach.

"We are excited to add Eric to the Penn football family," said Priore. "Eric has a great on-field pedigree having played four seasons at Maryland, and his coaching experiences at Johns Hopkins and Washington & Lee make him a great fit for our program." 

Franklin comes to Philadelphia after serving as a linebackers coach at Washington & Lee for the past two seasons. During his first season, W&L led the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) in scoring defense (24.7 ppg) and ranked second in both rush defense (135.8 ypg) and total defense (369.8 ypg.). Last autumn, he oversaw a Generals defense that led the ODAC in rush defense (93.5 ypg) rand ranked second in both interceptions (15) and sacks (28).

In his time with Washington & Lee, Franklin coached four players that earned VaSID All-State honors.

Prior to his tenure in Lexington, Franklin served as a wide receivers coach at Johns Hopkins during the 2017 season.  With the Blue Jays, he mentored a pair of First Team All-Centennial Conference selections, including the conference player of the year.

" I'm really excited to join the University of Pennsylvania football family," Franklin said. "Coach Priore and the staff are a great group of people and coaches. I can't wait to get started."

Franklin has also served as a graduate assistant coach at Wagner from 2015-16, working with the cornerbacks and linebackers while earning a Master of Arts in higher education and leadership organizations. 

His coaching experience also includes a stop at Archbishop Curley High School (2013-15), where he coached the wide receivers and tight ends, along with serving as the strength and conditioning coach and eventually, defensive coordinator.

A 2012 graduate of the University of Maryland with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology, Franklin was a four-year letterwinner for the Terrapins football team.  He appeared in 40 career games at safety and he started 25 of those contests. As a junior, he led the team in solo tackles (64) and total tackles (106). During his final year on campus at Maryland, he made 48 tackles, had six pass breakups and recovered one fumble. He was an ACC Honor Roll selection for the fall and spring terms of 2012.