Colorado freshman QB has business plan for success under Deion Sanders

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Colorado freshman QB has business plan for success under Deion Sanders
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How coaches salaries and the NIL bill affects college football
Dan Wolken breaks down the annual college football coaches compensation package to discuss salaries and how the NIL bill affects them.
Sports Pulse
Colorado freshman quarterback Julian "JuJu" Lewis doesn't turn 18 years old until September and still needs to add more beef to a body that weighs less than 200 pounds. But he's already in the middle of the biggest storyline of the season for his new head coach, Deion Sanders.
As a top recruit out of Carrollton, Georgia, Lewis also has a business agent, his own branded line of merchandise and an ownership stake in a company that aims to democratize name, image and likeness deals for college players (NIL).
In many ways, this makes him the poster child of this wild new era of college sports. His father even makes sure he knows his roles.
'He's always reminding me that I have two jobs: QB and entrepreneur,' Lewis said.
Lewis agreed to discuss these dual ambitions in an email interview with USA TODAY Sports. Both roles are being boosted by a company that he partly owns called Fanstake, where fans can pay to lure recruits to their favorite college teams by contributing to their NIL deals.
By the end of June, Lewis said he plans to announce at least three other equity deals besides Fanstake and will have four other active NIL deals before the season. Beyond that, Lewis hopes to win the battle to replace Shedeur Sanders as CU's next starting quarterback and then use Fanstake as a tool to lure top recruits to Colorado.
The goal is to seize all of these opportunities in Boulder, where the spotlight will include at least four CU games on ESPN or Fox in the first month of the season, but with no guarantee that Lewis will play in any of them.
Lewis part of battle to replace Shedeur Sanders
After Lewis signed with Colorado Dec. 4, Liberty transfer quarterback Kaidon Salter committed to CU two weeks later with one season of college eligibility remaining.
Did Lewis know when he committed to CU that the Buffaloes would bring in another QB for 2025?
Might he split time with Salter this season or consider redshirting?
The interview was edited for clarity and length and was arranged through the company.
∎ USA TODAY Sports: Before you committed and signed with CU late last year, did you know CU might later bring in a transfer QB?
'Coach Prime runs this like an NFL team,' Lewis said. 'Plus every program in college football is always going to try and get better and have depth at every position. You can't even prepare for the season without enough QBs on the roster.'
∎ What did CU say about maybe bringing in another QB before you signed with CU?
'CU is about development and competition,' Lewis said. 'The only thing I was looking for as a recruit was to be coached by great coaches and have an opportunity to compete as a freshman. I've been competing for QB jobs since I was 7. I joined a team at 10 that already had a QB, I competed every day against the guy who was there, and we ended up winning the Battle Youth National Championship that season and I threw 70 touchdown passes.'
Lewis also provided a reminder that he competed for the starting job in high school, too, where he played for the Carrollton Trojans in Georgia.
'Carrollton had kids who grew up wanting to be Trojans and I moved there,' Lewis said. 'I wasn't recruited by (coach) Joey King or asked to come. I made a decision to go and compete at the end of 7th grade. Then, going into 9th grade, I had to compete again for the varsity job. I'm not the kid who was ever handed jobs. My story is different. People just see the results and assume I've had some easy path. Other guys' dads coached teams, and they were automatically the QB. My dad took me to the hardest coaches and toughest programs, and I always had to earn it. Anything different and this wouldn't be my story.'
∎ Do you see CU picking one QB to go with in the fall season or maybe playing at least two on a situational basis because you have different styles?
'Coach Prime and Coach (Pat) Shurmur are going to put me in the best position to develop and our team in the best position to win. I have total faith in that. And I've got a lot of work to do in a little bit of time, so I'm ready when my coaches say I'm ready.'
∎ Do you plan to add a certain amount of weight as some new players do out of high school?
'I've gained 15lbs since January,' Lewis wrote. 'I'll probably put on whatever I can add before we get into pads and that will be what it is for this season.'
Lewis is now up to 198 pounds on his 6-foot-1 frame. He normally would be headed into his senior season of high school in 2025, but he reclassified to start college a year earlier.
∎ How is your NIL business going and how important is that to your college career?
"I'm blessed to be a part of this era in college and high school sports," Lewis replied. "There are thousands of great athletes who came before us who didn't have the opportunities today. NIL has nothing to do with my college career; football and NIL are two very separate things. Football is my priority. I have a responsibility to myself, my teammates, and my university to become the best player that I can be. NIL is going well, I'm thankful for the opportunities that I have. My dad and my team have done a really good job creating opportunities for me."
How Lewis plans to use company to boost CU roster
∎ How did you get involved with Fanstake and what appealed to you about it?
"When I heard about Fanstake, I was immediately interested because it allows players to help each other and their potential programs. At the end of the day we all want to win, and that's not possible without great teammates around you. The thought of fans being able to support their team and future players during the recruiting process is what made it a 'no brainer' for me."
Lewis also said he looks forward to 'using them next portal season to bring in players to join us at CU.'
One way he could do this is by encouraging CU fans to contribute money toward luring a player on Fanstake. The company started in November and already has more than 20,000 users, according to Greg Glass, the company's co-founder.
One example shows how Fanstake works. Five-star basketball prospect Nate Ament was wooed by Louisville fans who crowdfunded a combined $88,000 on Fanstake for him if he signed with the Cardinals. He instead decided to sign with Tennessee, whose fans had pledged only about $13,000.
The Louisville fans who put money down for Ament got their money returned since Ament signed with a different team. The $13,000 from Tennessee fans instead goes toward Ament's sponsorship deal with Fanstake.
'It helps democratize this landscape a little bit because even if you can't write a half-million-dollar check, you can get 100,000 fans to write $10 checks, or whatever it might be,' Glass told USA TODAY Sports.
Fanstake partnered with Lewis after he made his decision to commit to the Buffaloes. The deal appealed to him, Glass said, because it was a way to bring in more talent to Boulder.
'He wanted to make sure it wasn't just his NIL, but that he had a squad around him that was going to be secure,' Glass said.
The 'last thing' Julian Lewis is worried about
Lewis still made it clear where his NIL endeavors fit into his decision to join the Buffs after previously committing to play at Southern California.
∎ Was NIL part of your decision to go to CU?
"No it wasn't," Lewis replied. "It really came down to where I wanted to live and the opportunity to follow Shedeur who everyone knew was leaving for the NFL."
∎ NIL is part of some players' decisions to stay at a particular school. Would it be for you going forward? If so, how?
"That's the last thing I'm worried about, right," Lewis replied. "I'm a Buff."
∎ Because of your youth compared to Kaidon Salter's experience, some have wondered if you might be a candidate to redshirt this year. Nothing has been decided about that. But would you be open to that if it was ever suggested to you?
"I'm going to compete everyday and prepare for my freshman season," he stated.
∎ What are your plans this summer?
"I will be in Boulder for the summer, taking classes and working out."
∎ By chance do you go back to The Sink in Boulder to have the JuJu burger that the restaurant named after you?
"No not yet."
∎ For those who don't know, how did you get the nickname 'JuJu'?
"My older sister started calling me JuJu when I was like 3."
Colorado opens the season Aug. 29 against Georgia Tech in a home game on ESPN.
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: [e-mail]