Will Johnson: Michigan's NIL 'the main reason' Wolverines kept core group together

Michigan Wolverines football has lost only five scholarship players to the NCAA transfer portal since head coach Jim Harbaugh departed the program in late January — but only one of them, safety Keon Sabb, had started a game (five).

The Wolverines also saw key players return for another season instead of heading to the NFL Draft, including senior running back Donovan Edwards, senior safety Rod Moore, graduate safety Makari Paige and others. Junior cornerback Will Johnson, the defensive MVP of the national championship game last season, credited the Champions Circle collective for much of the player retention.

“Every year, it’s evolved,” Johnson said of Michigan’s NIL over the years. “I think they’re working with us to get guys in the transfer portal, the guys that came back for another year.

“I think the collective has done a great job of putting their all into making it what it is now, and I think they’ve done a great job so far, so I’m excited to see where it’s going.

“I think it was very important. We needed to keep that core group together — a lot of the guys that had experience on this team last year, especially in the secondary. I think that was the main reason we were able to do that, and I think it’s going to be big for later in this offseason, too.”

Later this offseason, of course, Michigan undergraduate players will have the option to enter the portal in the spring window that runs from April 15 through April 30. At the same time, the Wolverines will have the chance to add talent through it.

There were rumors that Michigan players were tampered with by other programs earlier this offseason — one of the ugly realities of the free transfer rule where athletes no longer have to sit out at their new program. Johnson, whose father, Deon, played at Michigan, has been committed to remaining in Ann Arbor, but he noted it’s “easy” for players to “get tempted” these days.

“Especially when you hear all the numbers and all the things like that,” Johnson said. “But we’re so close, we got a group of guys that is so talented that, that’s hard to pass up, too. We’re really just about staying together, keeping it together and getting better together, so that’s just what our mindset is. That’s what we’re standing on, so that’s what we’re about.”

Johnson and many of Michigan’s top players will be upperclassmen in 2024, with a great chance to be drafted to the NFL next spring. The 6-foot-2, 202-pounder was asked if that makes it easier to stay put rather than jump ship, and he noted that every situation is different.

“I think it’s all about your situation that you’re in, at your school,” the Michigan standout explained. “Whatever the money is for you or your team — there’s a lot that goes into it. I think it all depends on the situation, but I’m happy where I’m at, I’m happy with what they’ve been doing for us, so it’s been great here.”

There were rumors on social media earlier this offseason that junior defensive tackles Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham were being courted by other programs. Both have said publicly this week that they intend on remaining at Michigan, but Grant said he definitely saw/heard some of the noise.

“It’s just part of the deal,” Grant said. “Stuff out there is going to be stuff out there. Can’t really focus on that stuff; you gotta be present in the moment and go by the moment.

“I wouldn’t say it was like anything, it was just like coming across social media seeing stuff. It wasn’t like anything; it was just regular to me.”

Michigan players don’t seem too focused on the outside noise, but sticking with the Maize and Blue is definitely a topic of conversation.

“We definitely talk about it, but I want to be here and everybody wants to be here and everybody wants to be with each other,” Grant said. “So, that kind of outweighs everything else, just the type of brotherhood that we have with each other is bigger than any of that. We just try to stick together as best as we can. Sometimes, you gotta be a man — business is business — but we all want to stay together, definitely.”