Deion Sanders won’t give up on JuJu Lewis after benching him at Baylor, doesn’t name a starter either

Since opening night, Deion Sanders has said he wants his quarterback to play like Magic Johnson. Just distribute. Just get the ball to the playmakers and let them work.

On Saturday, he benched the guy he was asking to be more like the Hall of Fame basketball player.

Sanders pulled Julian Lewis at halftime of Colorado’s 23-13 loss to Baylor, inserting Utah transfer Isaac Wilson to open the second half with the Buffs trailing 10-3. Lewis had completed 11 of 16 passes but managed only 75 yards — his longest completion going just 15 yards. Lewis was sacked three times. Colorado converted just one of its first seven third downs. The offense, once again, went nowhere.

“It’s not oftentimes what you guys may see on the field and through the processes that you determine things,” Sanders said. “We’re on the headset, and it’s a lot of things you guys don’t know … It was a decision that I made because I was trying to get us going.”

Wilson eventually provided a brief spark. He led a 12-play, 95-yard drive in the fourth quarter — the lone Colorado touchdown, a 17-yard pass from Wilson to Joseph Williams that tied the game at 13. But the momentum lasted barely two minutes. Baylor answered with a five-play, 65-yard drive capped by Jadon Porter’s 33-yard touchdown catch from DJ Lagway, and the Bears pulled away from there. Wilson finished 12-of-25 for 156 yards and the touchdown. He was also sacked twice, and took an intentional grounding in the final minutes that effectively killed the Buffs’ desperation chance.

Sanders was asked about the quarterback decision going forward. He didn’t commit to anything.

“Let me digest this game,” he said. “I’m a little upset right now, but I’m gonna be kind because you guys (the media) are some of my favorites … Let me think that through on the plane.”

What Sanders did say about the decision reveals a bit about what he may do moving forward. When describing what he told Wilson before sending him out, Sanders explained his philosophy plainly: “You don’t have to be the man. Just get the ball to the men, and we’re good. Because we got some guys.”

It’s a repackaging of the Magic Johnson metaphor Sanders has been using since the season opener at Georgia Tech, and it contains within it a pretty clear indictment of what Lewis hasn’t been. Sanders has said Lewis isn’t “there yet,” that he “can’t expect something out of you that’s not in you.” Now he’s spelling out what he does want — a point guard — and he’s describing a role Lewis hasn’t been able to fill.

Still, Sanders is backing his highly-touted quarterback even if he doesn’t want him playing right now.

“Don’t give up on JuJu,” he said. “Don’t do that. That kid plays with tremendous effort and tremendous heart. He’s not quitting and he’s not abandoning anybody. We just needed a change. We needed inspiration at that time, some kind of way.”

The problem is that the “inspiration” has been needed a lot lately. Colorado went 3-of-15 on third down Saturday. The Buffs have now scored just one offensive touchdown in three of their four games — with the lone exception being a 52-21 win over Weber State. Sanders acknowledged the math himself Saturday.

“Eliminate the second game, and how much are we averaging per game points? Probably about 9 to 10,” Sanders said. “You can’t win like that.”

No, you can’t. And the question hovering over the next week is who gives the Buffs the best chance to.

Sanders also revealed that Kaneal Sweetwyne — who saw a series against Weber State — represents a different kind of option than Wilson. When he goes to Sweetwyne, Sanders said, “that’s more of a long-term type of thought process.” Wilson, by contrast, is the clean-it-up-right-now option, the steadier hand who’s supposed to manage the game.

The distinction matters because it signals Sanders hasn’t settled on a direction. He’s got three quarterbacks, three different profiles, and an offense that has been functionally broken against any defense with a pulse. Colorado’s 81 offensive plays Saturday produced just 363 yards, one touchdown, and that miserable 3-for-17 mark on third and fourth downs. Baylor, which had 10 penalties to CU’s nine, wasn’t exactly sharp either. The Bears just made fewer mistakes when it mattered.

Sanders was asked after the game if there’s a silver lining — maybe the defense played well enough to win, maybe Wilson showed something, maybe progress was made.

“I don’t look for silver linings, man. I look for W’s,” he said. “I ain’t trying to find a silver lining. Why don’t we just go ahead and get the gold and forget the silver?”

Colorado (2-2, 0-1 Big 12) hosts No. 11 and Big 12 favorites Texas Tech next Saturday on FOX. The Red Raiders are 4-0 and rolling, coming off a cupcake game. The Buffs, meanwhile, will spend the week trying to figure out who’s taking the first snap.

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