Zaire Franklin appreciates how far he’s come — from Philly to the Indianapolis Colts

Zaire Franklin is entering his seventh NFL season with the Indianapolis Colts. Right now, he’s having his most eventful offseason.

Franklin, who grew up in West Oak Lane, held his fourth annual Shelice’s Angels Business Academy at La Salle College High School last month. The academy is funded by Franklin’s nonprofit, Shelice’s Angels, which was organized in 2019 to inspire young women, in honor of the two women who raised Franklin — his mom, Shelice Highsmith, and his grandmother, Juanita Highsmith.

“[My mother] and my grandmother taught me so much about how to see further than the environment I was in, how to dream big,” Franklin told The Inquirer. “That’s all I’m really trying to impart on these kids. These kids come from tough environments, tough places. I’m just here to try to teach them and let them know that they can achieve everything, and I’m gonna do everything I can to give them the tools to do something.”

This year’s event at La Salle, where Franklin graduated in 2014, hosted 30 seventh- and eighth-grade students from Russell Conwell Middle School and Kenderton Elementary School. The kids heard lectures from three guest speakers, including NFL Films producer Courtland Bragg, and took part in a business simulation.

» READ MORE: Former Eagles fan, Colts linebacker Zaire Franklin returns to Russell Conwell Middle School for the kids

The simulation had students work together in groups to create their own clothing store, asking them to make important business decisions about financing, staffing, insurance, and more. Franklin visited each table, helping the kids build their brands and boost sales, all while engaging in some light-hearted trash talk about basketball and dodgeball games from the previous day.

“Everything I can to just be around the kids and have fun with them,” Franklin said. “I’m in there having fun. It’s a good time.”

The business academy has become a staple of Franklin’s offseason, which this March included signing a lucrative contract extension with the Colts. Indianapolis inked the linebacker to a three-year deal for $31.26 million following consecutive years in which he broke the franchise’s single-season tackles record.

Franklin, who played four years at Syracuse, was drafted in the seventh round by the Colts in 2018. He started as a special teamer, working up to special teams captain and eventually signing a three-year extension for $10 million in 2022. Since then, he has played his way into a starting spot on the defense and become one of the unit’s most important pieces. Last season, he was the Colts’ nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award for the work Shelice’s Angels has done.

“Sometimes I have to look back and really just appreciate how far I’ve come,” Franklin said. “It’s just a culmination of a lot of hard work, a lot of sacrifices not only for myself, but for my family. I’m just thankful that I’m able to help the Colts win and help make that program better than it was when I got there.”

Wasting no time to use his new deal for good, Franklin announced during the final day of the business academy that he will be starting the Juanita Highsmith Scholarship at La Salle. The school’s tuition sits at $27,500 entering the 2024-25 school year — nearly double what it was when Franklin attended — making it more difficult for kids with a background like his to attend.

“I truly think coming to La Salle helped shape and change my life — just the community and the people that are here,” Franklin said. “I just want to be able to give another kid in the city that same experience. Just the opportunity to be able to come out here and know that there’s a high school that’s this close to you that offers these types of things.”

Franklin hopes to develop a pipeline of kids from Shelice’s Angels to La Salle, which he appears well on the way to accomplishing. In the meantime, he’s been putting in equal effort on a second project away from the gridiron — a podcast.

Growing up, Franklin always wanted his own radio show. He considers podcasting the modern-day equivalent, which is why he built a relationship with podcaster Joe Budden last offseason. Budden worked behind the scenes as a mentor to Franklin, who realized his dream when Episode 1 of The Trenches was released last Aug. 25.

Franklin and his co-host, fellow Colts linebacker E.J. Speed, have released 31 episodes and accrued over 15,000 subscribers on their YouTube channel. Conversation usually revolves around the NFL, with notable guests including Colts teammates Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman.

“The ability to create a platform to control my own narrative, a platform for my teammate E.J. to speak on his piece, and even just create that free outlet for my other teammates to talk about whatever it is,” Franklin said. “I’m just thankful that people love the show.”

Franklin is evidently enjoying heaps of success off the field, but his goals on it may be slightly harder to fulfill. In his six NFL seasons, the Colts have won only one playoff game and have yet to capture an AFC South title — Franklin wants to do both this year. Whether or not things come together for Indianapolis, you can expect him to address all of it on The Trenches.

“I’m just one of them believers that if you’re gonna talk after a win, you gotta talk after the losses.”