5-star Desmond Ricks’ On3 NIL Valuation balloons to $48K

As Desmond Ricks’ recruiting stock heats up, so does his value on the NIL market.

Ricks — a five-star recruit out of IMG Academy and the No. 2 player in 2024 On3 Consensus — has seen a 92% growth in this On3 NIL Valuation over the past nine weeks. His NIL value has grown so much that’s he gone from not even being ranked in the On3 High School Football NIL Rankings all the way to the No. 57 spot.

He now has an On3 NIL Valuation of $48,000.

Furthermore, Desmond Ricks is one of only three prospects in the 2024 class to be included in the On3 High School Football NIL Rankings. He joins No. 1 2024 prospect Joshisa Trade of Miami Central and Texas Longhorns athlete commit Aeryn Hampton on the list.

Desmond Ricks’ NIL value is largely based on him being one of the most coveted recruits in the country.

At this point, he doesn’t have an overly strong social media brand with only around 11,600 followers. He does have around 7,700 followers on Instagram and has seen a steady increase in his On3 Per Post Value to $139. However, when you’re one of the nation’s most wanted prospects, you can still have a strong value, NIL experts say.

The On3 NIL Valuation is an index that looks to set the standard market value for both high school and college-level athletes. The NIL valuation does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals an athlete has completed to date. It rather signifies an athlete’s value at a certain moment in time.

Desmond Ricks a 5-star target for top teams

Along with being one of the top overall players in the country, Desmond Rick ranks as the No. 1 cornerback and the second-best player in Florida, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

On3 ranks Ricks similar to others in the industry. On3 lists him as the No. 2 player in the country, top cornerback and No. 1 overall player in the Sunshine State.

While it’s still early in Desmond Ricks’ recruitment, there are a couple of teams already standing out on his long offer list.

According to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, Alabama and North Carolina have the best early chance to land Ricks. The On3 RPM lists the Crimson Tide with a 46% chance of landing his commitment, while the Tar Heels have a 31.7% chance. Others like Florida State, LSU, NC State have 3.1% chances for the Chesapeake, Va., native, per the On3 RPM.

A week ago, Ricks told On3’s Chad Simmons that Florida State made a big move on his list after visiting Tallahassee.

“It honestly surprised me,” Ricks told On3. “Before the visit, I didn’t really know a lot about Florida State. I didn’t think too much about them, but my time there changed things a lot.”