BOULDER — Arch Madness is about to hit CU.
What Arch Manning was to Texas fans, Julian Lewis is to Buffs Nation. The 5-star recruiting jewel. The savior. The darling of the morning talk shows. The future we want now. Now, now, now, now.
He’s also 17 years old. A kid in the world’s candy store. During the Buffs’ spring game this past April, “Ju Ju” was seen sporting a black diamond Darth Vader necklace. He reportedly owns a Lamborghini, a Dodge Ram and a Tesla Cybertruck.
Coach Prime went with sling over bling. If Lewis was ready to be CU’s starting quarterback from the jump, wouldn’t Deion Sanders have run him out there with the first-team offense against big, bad Georgia Tech?
Or, more to the point, actually played him against the Yellow Jackets?
“Sometimes you don’t want to rush things; sometimes you don’t want to delay things,” the Buffs’ third-year football coach said Tuesday at his weekly news conference. “You want to make sure the timing is right.
“I don’t think the time (to play Lewis) was appropriate last week. I really don’t, (with) the way the game was flowing, the rhythm of the game. But this week, I made up my mind already, before now. He’s going to play.”
Groovy. He should. Let the kid splash around in shallow waters for a while before you chuck him into the deep end.
Me? I start Kaidon Salter. Sprinkle in Lewis. If the former stinks it up or if the latter lights it up, reverse the order for that trip to Houston on Sept. 12 — the next true test on CU’s slate.
Let’s be real here: Delaware is to Georgia Tech what yours truly is to George Clooney. The Buffs are 23.5-point favorites Saturday. The Blue Hens gave up 200 yards on the ground to Delaware State in their opener. Coach Prime should be able to pound the rock, or mix and match personnel to his heart’s content.
Delaware on Tuesday morning ranked No. 127 in ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI) out of 136 FBS programs. The Hens are the closest the Buffs have to a “get-right” game all season, depending on what you think of Wyoming (FPI: 101) on Sept. 20 or Arizona (FPI: 51) on Nov. 1. The Buffs ranked 57th; Georgia Tech, 31st. (As with all computer rankings at Labor Day, these things will be extremely fluid until the end of the month.)
Sanders said Tuesday that Lewis will make his collegiate debut this weekend. He didn’t say when. Or how much Ju Ju will play. He kinda-sorta laughed off the idea of starting the 5-star recruit out of Georgia.
“I know when I’m going to see him,” Prime said. “You just don’t know when you’re going to see him. I know when we’re going to see him.”
Salter deserves one more chance to keep his starting job. Lewis deserves a shot to try and push him. If the latter forces your hand with his play, so be it. If it’s a tie on all angles, go with the one who drives the Lambo.
The deck at CU was always stacked against Salter. He’s got one season of eligibility left. This is his last Hail Mary before a winter of NFL prep.
He’s going to have to start completing them. Because Lewis, the one with 54,000 followers on Xwitter, is the one Coach Prime has to keep happy. The one he needs to keep around.
The teen spurned USC to sign with CU. He’s got an NIL portfolio to rival a young Shedeur Sanders, and endorsement deals to consider. As with all recruiting pitches, you’d have to feel certain promises were made.
Lewis didn’t choose Boulder to sit. Dude can steer that Tesla through the transfer portal anytime he likes.
“He’s playing, all right? He’s playing,” Coach Prime continued. “You’ve got to understand, I love that kid, man. I really do. And I want him to be extremely successful.”
Salter, meanwhile, was just OK against Georgia Tech: 17 completions on 28 attempts for 159 yards, with one score through the air and another on the ground.
He was also wild on some third-down throws late, a sin magnified by Shedeur’s unflappable consistency in the clutch. There were times Salter tried to force a pass rather than tuck and run for a sure gain that would’ve moved the chains.
“You don’t think he knows that?” Coach Prime said. “I’m pretty sure the internet has told him, you know, if I didn’t tell him.
“I don’t have to babysit. These are some grown men getting handsomely paid. I’m pretty sure they understand (that) the objective is to win and to exercise their skill set to its best possible usage. He knows what his gifts are. He’s just got to use them.”
Saturday would be nice. Lewis gives you the best chance to win the internet. Salter’s probably got one more chance to prove he gives you the best chance to win a game.
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