“It’s a huge opportunity! What Coach Prime has been able to build in two seasons can’t be denied. I’ve had a chance to get to know him and believe that he can further develop me into the player and person that I want to be,” Colorado’s incoming freshman and class of 2025 4-star quarterback Julian Lewis had said. He had also highlighted the experience of Colorado’s offensive coordinator, Coach Pat Shurmur, who brings NFL expertise that could prepare him for the next level. In fact, the Buffs’ head coach Deion Sanders also wanted to start that as early as possible. To ensure that, he did as much as he could do.

“We have most of our high school kids that we signed… They should all be here. And they should all participate in practice leading up to the bowl game. They can’t play in the bowl game but they can practice. I just called a commissioner of the league the other day because I want to see if they could dress. I just want them to be a part of it. They don’t have to dress for the game but I want them to dress while we warming up and be part of when they could go change into sweats,” Coach Prime had said about Colorado’s early enrollees joining the team for their Alamo Bowl matchup with the BYU Cougars. Eventually, 10 early enrollees, including Lewis, were in uniform for the game. 

At 17, Lewis has the massive responsibility of filling in the shoes of Shedeur Sanders. So Deion believed it was supremely important for the talented youngster to practice alongside the likes of Shedeur and Travis Hunter before they left the program. As he said, “Tremendous… That young man is phenomenal what he’s done in high school football. And the thing that people forget, he’s a really good quarterback. He has all intangibles but the kid is a winner. He’s won all his life. That’s what we love about him.” Right, you are, Coach. But did your squad do enough to impress this winner when he watched it from the sidelines? Well, fans doubt.

The BYU game was supposed to be a lifetime highlight for Buffs seniors, Shedeur and Travis, but instead, they totally messed up their final chance in a bowl game they dreamed of. After a solid season, this was just sad and rough. Plus, Shedeur’s season finished with completing 16/23 passes for 208 yards and 2 TDs. He was sacked three times and threw two interceptions before a sellout crowd of 64,261. Hunter had four receptions for 106 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown from Sanders with 6:14 remaining in the third quarter. But when you can’t run the pigskin, nothing else clicks. Let’s not get started on the Buffs’ offense.

BYU dominated from start to finish including a 20-0 lead at halftime as the Cougars held Colorado’s offense scoreless in the opening half for the second time this season. The special teams unit had a strong opening 30 minutes with Parker Kingston returning a punt for a touchdown for a second time this season and Will Ferrin connecting on a pair of field goals.

In total BYU outgained the Buffaloes 331-210, with 84 of those yards coming when the game was already over. Let alone a stifling 180-2 on the ground. The Cougars earned 22 first downs with an 8-of-14 mark on 3rd down, while allowing just nine to Colorado and ran 65 plays to the opponent’s 42. BYU’s ground game averaged 4.3 yards per carry while its defense allowed the Buffaloes just 0.1 per tote. The Cougars controlled time of possession as well, 35:59-24:01. After this debacle, now the fans are adding to the misery of the team. Many of them asked Julian Lewis to reconsider his decision to stay committed to the Buffs.

Did Julian Lewis make a mistake to join the Buffs?

One fan hit X saying, ‘Julian Lewis might hit the transfer portal after the game.‘ Tough crowd. Interestingly, Deion Sanders had plans to have Lewis operate as the scout-team quarterback ahead of the Bowl game. “We gonna put his bu** on the scout team and let him run against the ones. So we gon see if you flinch. We gon see what you got.” But this fan thinks that they themselves fell short of proving their mettle in front of their high profile commit.

“Julian Lewis, you still have time to flip this; this is your offensive line,” the fan noted. While Shedeur Sanders shouldn’t bear all the blame for the loss, the offensive line’s inability to protect him, as seen in the five sacks against Nebraska, is a major factor. But then Shedeur is a role model for JuJu, and his failure might not make a good impression on him, as this fan says, “Julian Lewis watching Shedeur get destroyed from the sidelines. He’s about to give those keys back to him at the end of this one 🤣. However, Lewis still looks to be firm on his ground. Take a look at this.

After Shedeur’s college career came to an end, he received a kind gesture from his heir apparent. Lewis posted a locker room photo of his No. 10 and Shedeur’s No. 2 jersey hanging side by side, writing, “You left huge shoes to fill, but I promise to work to leave @CUBuffsFootball even better than I found it. Forever grateful 🙏🏽 #TrustGod #TrustTheProcess.”  But the fans are out there making predictions like, “After watching this Colorado Bowl game, QB Julian Lewis is going to pull a Dallas Wilson and try to get out of his scholarship and go elsewhere! This game is embarrassing.”

But can’t really blame fans over it. Imagine waiting to witness an extraordinary game from the team you are going to be a part of and seeing them struggling to score a single point till halftime. How will that affect your mind? Even this X user feels that JuJu should take this as a warning and run for his life, saying, “Julian Lewis seeing this Colorado offense before they lose the vast majority of their weapons: I have made a huge mistake.” However, let’s not forget it’s the same team that proved what they are capable of this season. Looks like Lewis now has dual responsibilities to not only fill shedeur’s void but also prove that he was correct to put his trust in Coach Prime.