Five-star quarterback Julian “Juju” Lewis committed to Colorado on Thursday.

Lewis, the No. 35 overall prospect in the class of 2025 in the 247Sports Composite, had been committed to USC for more than a year but withdrew that commitment on Nov. 17.

He visited Colorado last month for the Buffaloes’ win over Cincinnati and made a surprise visit to Georgia last weekend and watched the Bulldogs beat Tennessee. He announced his decision on the “Pat McAfee Show.”

Lewis plays at Carrollton High School, about 50 miles west of Atlanta. His team is 11-0 and will play Valdosta in a playoff game Friday night. For the season, Lewis is 200-for-257 for 2,842 yards with 40 touchdowns and four interceptions. He is completing 77.8 percent of his passes, a career high and 10 percentage points higher than last season.

What does this mean for Colorado?

Colorado doesn’t have an experienced backup quarterback or a plan at the position outside of Shedeur Sanders, who will enter the NFL Draft after this season.

Now Colorado has a plan for the coming months, and Lewis would likely be a Day 1 starter in Boulder. It’s also proof that Deion Sanders remains in Colorado after his sons (Shedeur and Shilo) and Travis Hunter leave. It’s the biggest recruiting win for Sanders since Hunter transferred from Florida State to Jackson State during the early signing period in December 2021.

It’s hard to imagine that both teams’ on-field fortunes didn’t have an impact. USC (5-5) has lost four of its last five games and the stretch for Lincoln Riley’s program has never been worse. The Trojans must rally to reach a bowl game.

Colorado, meanwhile, has clawed its way into the Big 12 title game and the College Football Playoff picture with six wins in seven games. Sanders’ stock hasn’t been higher since the Buffaloes’ 3-0 start in 2023 against a trio of teams that ultimately missed bowl games. It’s not hard to sell the idea that Lewis could be key in program development for Sanders going forward, while Riley’s future in a USC transition program looks much less bright. — Ubben

What happened to USC?

Although Lewis had been involved with USC for almost a year and a half, he had not shied away from interest from other programs. In the spring he visited some SEC schools, as well as Indiana and Colorado. The SEC schools found other quarterbacks, but the Hoosiers and Buffaloes remained persistent. Even though Lewis attended USC, the fact that he never publicly confirmed his commitment to the Trojans and visited other programs certainly raised questions. It actually made the divorce inevitable.

And USC clearly wasn’t caught off guard. The staff remained in contact with Husan Longstreet and made a strong – and ultimately successful – effort to dislodge the five-star prospect from his commitment to Texas A&M. — Morality

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(Photo: John David Mercer / Imagn Images)