Ranking Michigan's 2023 recruiting class by NIL valuations

With spring football behind us, as we inevitably look forward to the next class, let’s see where the 2023 Michigan commits rank using On 3 NIL valuations. 

Reminder: NIL valuation does not track the deals an athlete has completed. It actually represents an athlete’s value at a particular moment in time. It focuses on two main factors – an athlete’s social media presence and their athletic performance. 

***Three-star Wilmette (Ill.) Loyola defensive lineman Brooks Bahr does not have an On3 NIL valuation available.

#5 – Cole Cabana

Dexter (Mich.) running back Cole Cabana is the second-highest ranked Michigan commit, but he surprisingly starts us off with the lowest NIL valuation. It’s mostly due to his lack of social media presence, only registering 3k total followers via Twitter. Cabana carries a $93 per post value on the platform; however, there’s been little movement in his value over the last few months. This four-star, in-state recruit is the No. 11 overall back in the 2023 class, according to the On3 Consensus.

#4 – Adam Samaha

If you would’ve guessed the kicker comes in last, you’re wrong. With 3.7k total followers, this Ann Arbor native watched his NIL valuation grow 116 percent over the last 14 weeks to land him at $14.4k. Adam Samaha, a three-star Huron High product, is projected to have an $87 per post value on Twitter (1.5k) and a $104 per post value on Instagram (2.2k). For comparison, Samaha’s $14.4k valuation at Michigan is higher than the 2023 class average for any major institution in Texas. Michigan’s 2023 NIL valuation average ranks third, behind Oklahoma and USC, when looking at the top ten recruiting classes in the On3 Consensus.

#3 – Benjamin Hall

Despite being unranked, Kennesaw (Ga.) North Cobb running back Benjamin Hall cracks the top three on this list after having his NIL valuation more than triple in the weeks since his official commitment. Hall’s decision to choose Michigan over schools like South Carolina, Georgia State and Charlotte brought his value up to $21k and placed him among the top 500 high school prospects. His 2.6k total followers between Twitter (1.2k) and Instagram (1.4k) are projected to produce $87 and $96 per post, respectively. 

#2 – Semaj Morgan

Three-star wide receiver Semaj Morgan is currently the highest ranked in-state commit in terms of NIL. Morgan is the No. 70 receiver in the On3 Consensus and No. 265 overall in NIL value, joining the Wolverines by way of West Bloomfield (Mich.) High. His $26k valuation at Michigan is higher than the 2023 class averages for Penn State, Ohio State, Georgia and Notre Dame – all top five in the On3 recruiting rankings. Ranking social media presence, Morgan ends up second again at 8.3k total followers. Per post value: Twitter (2.5k) – $91, Instagram (5.8k) – $140.

#1 – Raylen Wilson

On3 Consensus four-star 2023 Tallahassee (Fla.) Lincoln linebacker Raylen Wilson leads all Michigan commits with an NIL valuation of $44k. Wilson tops the list at No. 73 in the On3 high school football NIL rankings, totaling 65k followers between all platforms. Most of his social media engagement funnels through TikTok (44k), translating to $160 per post, while Instagram (12.9k) actually has the most lucrative per post value for Wilson at $224. Trailing the trio at 4.7k followers, his Twitter could potentially add $100 per tweet. Wilson is slated as the No. 6 overall linebacker in the 2023 class.