Colorado had entered the night 2-0. The Buffaloes had survived Georgia Tech 14-13 in the opener and then handled Weber State 52-21. Though not quite there yet, it gave Deion Sanders a chance to start his fourth season with some momentum. Then Northwestern ripped it apart, with Jason Whitlock now highlighting the team’s weakest position.

“Deion realized more than anything…’that’s my quarterback,'” Whitlock said on his YouTube channel. “‘My quarterback is not who I thought he was’…Juju[Julian] Lewis looked very two-star-ish to me. Deion knows he has a problem moving. That can’t be fixed.”

The Buffaloes lost 41-7 on Sept. 19. Northwestern scored 21 points in the first half and added another 14 in the third quarter. Colorado’s offense managed 348 yards, but four turnovers and three failed fourth-down tries repeatedly killed drives. That was the backdrop for Jason Whitlock’s latest criticism of the Buffs HC.

“Deion Sanders, biggest loser of the weekend,” Whitlock said on his September 21 podcast. “I do believe for the first time during his fourth year at Colorado that Deion was legitimately humbled. I’m not even sure if he knew it, but he had 41-7. There was nothing he could do.”

The main problem Coach Prime recognizes about his team is his QB1, Julian Lewis. Against Northwestern, Lewis completed 19 of 29 passes for 168 yards and one touchdown. He also threw two interceptions

The first half mattered more. Colorado turned the ball over three times before halftime. Micah Welch lost a fumble at the Colorado 44-yard line, giving Northwestern a short field for its opening touchdown. A fourth-down stop on Colorado’s next possession kept the pressure on. By halftime, the game was 21-0.

Lewis did not arrive in Boulder as an unknown recruit. ESPN rated him the No. 2 player in the 2025 class and a five-star quarterback when he committed to Colorado. He was also the highest-ranked recruit Sanders had landed at Colorado. So, the bigger problem is the roster around Lewis.

Colorado’s 2024 team went 9-4 and had a 7-2 record in the Big 12. The 2025 season then collapsed to 3-9. Sanders responded by changing both coordinators, hiring Brennan Marion to install his Go-Go offense and Chris Marve to run the defense. Lewis was supposed to be a major part of that reset.

He had already shown some promise as a freshman in 2025. He started two games, threw for 589 yards and four touchdowns without an interception, and produced 299 yards and two touchdowns in his first start against West Virginia. Northwestern was different.

The Wildcats did not allow Lewis to settle into the rhythm that had made him such a highly regarded prospect. Colorado struggled to sustain drives, and the turnovers kept handing Northwestern favorable field position. Once QB Aidan Chiles and the Northwestern offense built the lead, Lewis was forced to operate from a completely different game script. Sanders acknowledged that after the loss.

“They forced us into doing things that are not truly who we are,” Sanders said.

Sanders had a completely rebuilt group competing for jobs, with nine transfer linemen added to the room. Every starting lineman from the previous season was gone, including Jordan Seaton. The results have started to show.

Lewis was sacked once against Georgia Tech and three times against Weber State. By the Northwestern game, he was playing behind Bo Hughley, Chauncey Gooden, Sean Kinney, Jayvon McFadden, and Leon Bell. That is not necessarily a talent problem. It is a continuity problem. On top of it, the receiver room has not fixed everything.

Joseph Williams returned after emerging as one of the team’s top targets. DeAndre Moore Jr. arrived from Texas. Danny Scudero came over from San Jose State after leading the country in regular-season receiving yards. Kam Perry also arrived after nearly producing 1,000 yards at Miami (Ohio). On paper, that is plenty.

Scudero’s absence has mattered. Against Northwestern, Williams and Moore each received 10 targets. No other Colorado receiver was targeted more than once. That is not a quarterback surrounded by endless options. It is a young QB leaning heavily on two receivers while the rest of the passing game struggles to consistently enter the picture.