Deion Sanders will be making his pick to replace former QB Shedeur Sanders, with either Julian Lewis or Kaidon Salter. Both are set to mark a new era for Colorado football, as Sanders’ first season will be without his familiar faces on the team. However, Lewis will be facing a difficult road ahead in the season. With Coach Prime back to take charge, fall camp is bringing some troubling news for the young QB.

Julian Lewis is very likely going to see playing time this year, given his elite status as a recruit. Yet to reach adulthood and expected to fill in for Shedeur Sanders, he’s already seeing some high reviews. ESPN’s Billy Tucker ranked Lewis as the No. 9 player in his list of top 10 freshmen. Deion Sanders should be happy with that ranking since this new Colorado squad is still a major question mark. But QB1 battle aside, Lewis now stands to lack some serious support on the field.

Deion Sanders shared a worrying update from fall camp. “Got a lot of injuries on the offensive line and we know some of those guys who we can trust are going to come back and fill those positions,” he said. It’s still unclear who from that unit is among the injuries, but it doesn’t paint a good picture. Coach Prime’s second OL for Colorado gave up 43 sacks last year, which was still a better number compared to 2023. But we also know this unit to falter and make way for the QB to take hits, which can put Lewis’ 2025 outlook in danger.

LT Jordan Seaton is the most important name on that line, who earned Pro Football Focus’ All-America honors. He allowed zero sacks in 11 of the 13 games he started and is expected to be even better this year. Then there are the key additions of Cooper Lovelace and Xavier Hill. The latter helped the Memphis offense finish 12 in the country in scoring offense in 2024. Interestingly, the Colorado O-line is the country’s 3 heaviest, which means that the trenches mean some serious business this time. Then there’s Zylon Crisler, Zarion McGill, and Aki Ogunbiyi.

41 of the 65 O-line starters from last year are back. Though it was a unit that was better than its 2023 version, it struggled. And that led to Shedeur Sanders struggling. Deion Sanders should strive to keep that from happening to Julian Lewis, who is seen as the future of Colorado football more readily than as a starter. It’s going to be a tough choice for Coach Prime. On one hand, Lewis is emerging as the star of Colorado football, signing seven-figure NIL deals. And then there’s senior Kaidon Salter, who has the experience card over the young QB.

Is Kaidon Salter getting preference in the Buffaloes’ fall camp?

Salter comes in as a seasoned QB1, with two full seasons as a starter in the bag. Salter comes in 5,283 yards, 59 TDs, and only 13 INTS from his 4-year tenure at Liberty. His addition gives the Buffaloes’ QB room a massive jump. And unlike Lewis, Salter looks like the better rushing QB. He comes with 1,697 rushing yards and 19 TDs in that aspect. Coach Prime might be looking at Salter for his QB1 choice instead of Lewis, simply because he is too young, and the transfer QB has already been here. During fall camp practice, Salter threw a neat TD pass to WR Hykeem Williams in the red zone. If he already has a strong chemistry with a leading WR, maybe Lewis seems to be losing his upper hand.

Salter and Lewis are both getting reps. But the experience is still a major factor. OC Pat Shurmur said last Friday, “Juju obviously is much younger. So this process is a little bit foreign to him, but Kaden has got a lot of experience and is used to it.” CBS Sports’ Robby Kalland wrote that because Shurmur mentioned this aspect of the QB1 race, it means Lewis isn’t looking like the winner, as of now. The QB has been on the national scene since he reached eighth grade, wrote Tucker. But will high-school stardom guarantee Julian Lewis a starting job this year?

This year is going to be a second litmus test for Deion Sanders. We’ll get to see what he makes of a new Colorado squad this season, which lacks his star players. But he has one in the making, in Julian Lewis. But the QB is part of an experiment at Boulder this year, and should rely on a strong O-line ahead of him. As injury rocks this unit, will he and Deion Sanders be able to silence critics with a respectable record?