On3 NIL Valuations for Alabama's 2024 commitments

JosephAHastings

2024 Alabama QB commit Julian Sayin. (Photo by Chad Simmons/On3)

Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) is one of the most talked about topics in college athletics nowadays. There are daily headlines about the benefits — and even consequences — of NIL and its impact on collegiate sports.

On3 continues to provide in-depth, comprehensive coverage as it pertains to the ever-changing landscape of NIL. One of the ways in which we separate ourselves from the pack is the presence of On3 NIL Valuations on each prospect’s profile pages.

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For more context, the On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets the standard market NIL value for high school and college athletes. A proprietary algorithm, the On3 NIL Valuation calculates an athlete’s NIL value using dynamic data points targeting three primary categories: performance, influence and exposure.

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While the algorithm includes deal data, it does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals athletes have completed to date, nor does it set an athlete’s NIL valuation for their entire career.

In the story below, BamaInsider takes a look at the On3 NIL Valuations of all four of Alabama’s commitments in their 2024 class.

QB Julian Sayin — $311,000

High School Football NIL Rank: No. 9

Total Social Media Followers: 19.9K

Sayin has the highest On3 NIL Valuation out of any commitment in Alabama’s 2024 class. On top of that, he has the fourth-highest valuation in this recruiting cycle, with the ones ahead of him being Dylan Raiola (No. 1 overall), Florida commit DJ Lagway, and Jadyn Davis.

Like Sayin, all of the names listed above are quarterbacks.

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This is fairly impressive as Sayin’s social media follower count is significantly less than those other quarterbacks. Raiola has nearly 100,000 followers, Lagway is at around 42,000, and Davis is over 35,000; meanwhile, Sayin has yet to hit 20,000 followers across Instagram, Tik Tok, and Twitter.

He actually ranks ahead of South Carolina signee Nyckoles Harbor, who has over three times as many followers (68,000-plus) than Sayin has.

There are three key factors at play here: Sayin playing quarterback, having a high ranking, and being an Alabama commitment.

Quarterbacks not surprisingly, typically carry a higher On3 NIL Valuation. As mentioned above, performance factors into the valuation, too, with Sayin carrying a No. 22 overall ranking on the 2024 On3 Consensus.

Being an SEC quarterback commit, especially for Alabama, carries some weight. 2023 quarterback signee Eli Holstein has an On3 NIL Valuation of $385,000 despite having just over 11,000 social media followers.

Sayin’s number will likely go up as he continues to accrue more followers and potentially rise in the rankings.

ATH Jaylen Mbakwe — $198,000

High School Football NIL Rank: No. 24

Total Social Media Followers: 23K

Some of the same factors that led to Sayin’s high On3 NIL Valuation are also at play with Mbakwe.

For Mbakwe, one of the key elements in his valuation is the ranking he has across various recruiting ranking services. Besides one service having him at No. 73, every other network has Mbakwe at No. 9 overall or higher in the 2024 class.

Also, Mbakwe has built up a decent social media following. With almost 50 posts on Instagram, Mbakwe has racked up over 15,700 followers on the popular social media app. He also has a combined 7,000-plus following across his Tik Tok and Twitter accounts.

Once again, being committed to a program like Alabama assists in the valuation being this high. Bama is a championship contender every year and is constantly producing top NFL Draft picks; that makes Crimson Tide players more valuable in the NIL space.

It will be interesting to see how Mbakwe’s NIL Valuation changes — if at all — if the position on his profile changes from “Athlete” to “Cornerback.”

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WR Perry Thompson — $99,000

High School Football NIL Rank: No. 130

Total Social Media Followers: 15.7K

Perry Thompson saw his stock rise significantly last summer.

Shortly after earning an offer from Alabama, Thompson announced his commitment to the Crimson Tide on June 24. Thompson would go on to collect offers from Auburn, Georgia Tech, Miami, and Tennessee since committing.

The Foley (Ala.) product went from unranked to the No. 52 overall player on the 2024 On3 Consensus. In the process, Thompson’s On3 NIL Valuation skyrocketed as it now sits at just shy of six figures, going up $11,000 over the past 10 weeks.

That number is sure to go up throughout the year.

Alabama commits Perry Thompson and Jaylen Mbakwe — Alabama commits Perry Thompson (left) and Jaylen Mbakwe at Battle Miami.

Thompson is currently sitting at just shy of 16,000 total social media followers. If he continues to take visits elsewhere (Thompson went to Auburn last month) and promotes those trips on social media, he’ll rack up more followers during the spring and summer.

On the production front, Thompson will have a chance to improve his ranking this year. He’s coming off a season in which he had 87 receptions (broke Julio Jones’ school record) and 1,059 yards last season; that, plus performances in camps and all-star settings, could help to improve his ranking.

Also worth noting is that 2025 Alabama wide receiver commit Ryan Williams has an On3 NIL Valuation of $114,000. That places him in the top 100 of high school football prospects, with Williams having racked up well over 55,000 followers on social media.

An outstanding 51,400 of those followers are from his Tik Tok.

LB Sterling Dixon — $64,000

High School Football NIL Rank: No. 271

Total Social Media Followers: 15.5K

Although Dixon and Thompson have close to the same number of followers, the latter has a noticeably higher On3 NIL Valuation.

One key difference between these two, however, is their current rankings. Thompson is a borderline top-50 player on the On3 Consensus, while Dixon is currently sitting at No. 261.

While On3 has Dixon at No. 61, every other recruiting ranking service has him at No. 271 or unranked nationally. If other services rank him close to On3’s, then that could potentially assist in improving Dixon’s On3 NIL Valuation.

Dixon, who will be participating in this weekend’s Under Armour All-America Camp in Atlanta, put up mind-blowing stats last season. As a junior, Dixon recorded 172 total tackles (132 solo), 39 tackles for loss, and 18 sacks.

The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder is a strong contender to rise up in the On3 Consensus rankings throughout the year.

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