Following the departure of Morton Maidens Head Basketball Coach Eric Velasquez to pursue opportunities at other schools, Morton ISD recently announced the Maidens new coach will be Alfonzo Franklin.
Before the job opening was even posted, Franklin initially applied to Morton for a teaching position only but after Morton Athletic Director Trevor Bulmer saw his heavy coaching experience on his application, talks of potentially coaching as well eventually led to his eventual hire.
“I’m really excited about Coach Franklin. He’s bringing tons of experience and success with him,” Bulmer said. “I think he’s going to bring confidence and intensity to our girls and all the programs he’s a part of. He met the kids on Monday, and it was a really positive environment, so I’m excited to see what he does.”
That high school coaching experience that Coach Franklin brings in includes a District Championship and Coach of the Year honors in 2022 with Hale Center, and a runner-up district finish with Abilene, both as the Head Coach. Franklin also spent time at Sudan, Littlefield and Lubbock Estacado as an assistant coach, even coaching different sports previously.
Franklin took a gap year from coaching for personal reasons and remained working around kids for the temporary season but ultimately desired to coach again.
For his return, he chose Morton specifically because of Superintendent Mario Aguirre, noting his vibe and well-respected reputation as key factors in his decision.
Now, Coach Franklin takes over the reins of the Maidens as they’re coming off an 11-20 overall record, 3-9 district record and a fifth place 2A District 5 finish in the 2025-26 season.
That was nine wins more than the season before, but they are still very much in the rebuilding phase, which Coach Franklin addressed when stating his goals for the program.
“First and foremost, we’ve got to build the program back up. It’s kind of been depleted, and the numbers are low,” Coach Franklin said. “I’m talking to a coach today trying to get the schedule set for next year and as of right now, we’re probably only going to have one high school team. I’m going to be walking down the halls for the next month and early into the school year trying to recruit girls to come put a jersey on and give it a shot. We’ve got to build the team up and build a culture. Once we get those things established, the goal is always to win a District Championship, make the playoffs and win Gold Balls.”
Coach Franklin would go on to note that it will be difficult to achieve those things in year one, but if the girls buy in and work hard, they certainly can.