Everything Deion Sanders Said About Julian Lewis, Colorado's Upset Win vs. GT in CFB Opener

Colorado coach Deion Sanders expressed pride in quarterback Julian Lewis following a tumultuous season opener his team won after a late touchdown drive and a blocked field goal.

Sanders told reporters after Colorado's 14-13 season-opening win he was glad Lewis completed the clutch scoring drive "because you guys would have been eating him alive if he hadn't."

"The kid is still young. He's still growing... I want you guys to give him time," Sanders said Thursday night.

The Buffaloes offense got the ball for the last time Thursday night with just over one minute left on the clock.

"I said, 'Look, I'm getting ready to use every one of these timeouts," Sanders said. "'You're probably gonna have a minute-something left on the clock. Go to work, because we're not going to have a timeout, so they're not going to be up because they don't want to get beat deep. They don't want to do that. We're going to have a chance to catch and get out of bounds.'

"And [offensive coordinator Brennan Marion] dialed it up. He dialed the correct play, and JuJu made the throw. I'm proud of him."

Clutch TD Puts Colorado Up

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A redshirt freshman, Lewis appeared in four games for the Buffaloes last season before winning the starting job this summer.

The quarterback struggled in the first half of Friday's game, going 6-for-14 with 41 yards and concluding the second quarter with a pair of three-and-outs.

Sanders said he used the halftime break as an opportunity to speak with Lewis in front of his teammates.

"I talked to him at halftime in front of the whole team... 'Let's go. You're that man. We believe in you. Let's go,'" Sanders said. "I challenged him in front of the whole team, and he went and did his thing... he took advantage of the moment. He didn't shrink in it."

Lewis conducted two longer series that didn't end in a score before marching the Buffaloes 75 yards downfield with his clutch touchdown drive.

He finished the game 14-of-27 with 124 yards and a touchdown as the Buffaloes blocked a potential walk-off field goal to seal the win.

After starting the 2025 campaign with a season-opening loss to Georgia Tech, the Buffaloes went 3-9 in their first season following the departures of Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter.

Thursday's victory marked the program's first win since an Oct. 11, 2025 game against visiting Iowa State.

"We beat a really, really good team and a really, really good coaching staff," Sanders said. "Our guys were resilient. I'm proud of them. I'm truly happy for them.

"We didn't have many flights back home in victory [last season], or any flights back home, but this is going to be a wonderful flight... I'm really pleased."

Lewis will get his next shot at helping Colorado conduct a more consistent passing game on Sept. 12 when the Buffaloes play their home opener against non-major Weber State.