Former blue-chip recruit quarterback Julian Lewis was benched Saturday in Waco after a miserable first half. In one half of play, Lewis went 11/16 for 75 yards, zero touchdowns, and zero interceptions. On paper, this stat line isn’t all that ugly, but that’s not what the eye test said. Juju played scared all half, refusing to even try to push the ball downfield.
Photo Cred: CU
Where did the guy we fell in love with against Weber State go? After watching his performance against Baylor, he looked like a ghost of himself from the Weber State game. The throws Lewis made against Weber State must be in there somewhere, so what happened? Did he lose any confidence he had at Northwestern? To pile on to his struggles throwing, Juju refused to escape the pocket and pick up chunk yardage.
His legs are a crucial part of the success of the “go go” offense. He finished with four recorded rushes for -17 yards against Baylor. Even after OC Brennan Marion pleaded with his young quarterback to “stop being scared,” Lewis remained timid and was eventually pulled at halftime. In Lewis’ absence, Isaac Wilson, the Utah transfer and brother to former first-round pick Zach Wilson, started the second half.
Wilson’s statistics did not jump off the screen either, but he did appear to play with more aggressiveness and was willing to push the ball down the field. He finished 12/25 with 156 yards and one touchdown. Wilson also orchestrated one of the best drives of the season. He led a 12-play, 95-yard touchdown drive to start the fourth quarter. All this leads us to the question of who will get the nod at quarterback for the Buffs.
Photo Cred: Facebook
They take on the 12th-ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders at home this Saturday. Despite national media like Matt Zenitz of CBS and Pete Nakos of On3 reporting that Isaac Wilson will start at QB in place of Lewis, at Tuesday’s press conference, Coach Sanders has played it coy and has not named a starter.
“I don’t know [who will start]. I know some people are running with the narrative that it’s already decided. We’re going to see how practice goes this week.”
As for what Sanders is looking for in practice this week to decide a starter, “there’s a lot.”
“Flow, rhythm, confidence, having a grasp of the offense, making it work, those guys responding to you—meaning the receivers, the line, the team, how they embrace you. What do they want as well? Oftentimes you gotta give them what they want because they’re gonna work harder when you do that.”
As for star receivers Joseph Williams and DeAndre Moore Jr., they believe either quarterback will be ready regardless of who gets the nod.
“They both can make every throw on the field,” Williams said. “They both throw with a lot of velocity, and they both put a lot of touch on the ball. They’re both really good leaders.”
Moore Jr. agreed that both are up for the challenge.
“We’ve got a ton of reps since we’ve all gotten together in January and until now. So, whether that be 10, 16, or 14, we’ve all been getting those one reps, those throws, those certain little timing things to where, if any quarterback needs to go in—we’re good to go.”
I think the national media’s belief that Isaac Wilson will get the start is correct. I also believe that starting Wilson is the right call. To this point, 19-year-old Julian Lewis has not shown enough to prove he is developing to get CU’s season back on the rails. Whether that’s the fault of CU player development or his own, the facts are the facts at this point. Prime offered the biggest clue about the starter in Tuesday’s press conference.
“I haven’t talked to Juju. I’ve talked to Isaac; the kid is excited about the possibilities.”
To make matters worse for Lewis’s chances of starting, on Wednesday’s Colorado Football Coaches Show, Coach Prime went into depth on how fearless Wilson is when it comes to throwing the football—a juxtaposition of Coach Marion’s plea to Lewis discussed above.
Photo Cred: Yahoo Sports
“Isaac’s not scary,” he said. “Isaac’s gonna go out and try it. When I saw Isaac—we threw a seam down the middle, and he missed widely. It was a miss. But he took a shot at it. He didn’t look at it and say, ‘Oh, I’m not gonna do that.’”
At the end of the day, I am of the belief that Wilson’s willingness to push the ball downfield to a talented receiver corps will be good for the Buffs. Who do you think should get the start vs. #12 Texas Tech?
