Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver, Omarion Miller, playing in the game against the University of Arizona at Folsom Field on Saturday, Nov. 1st, 2025. (Aspen Doust/CU Independent)
Head coach Deion Sanders and the University of Colorado Buffaloes are taking a look in the mirror before hitting the field Saturday morning against West Virginia University. Following consecutive losses, it was announced that five-star freshman quarterback Julian Lewis will make his first career start Saturday and that offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur has been relieved of his play-calling duties.
Sanders reaffirmed the news about Lewis during Tuesday’s press conference, leaving a simple answer to the decision: “common sense.”
Lewis will take the helm over senior transfer Kaidon Salter, who has started the last six games for Colorado, going 2–4 over that stretch.
Salter had some bright spots earlier in the season, such as scoring four total touchdowns and throwing for 304 yards against the University of Wyoming. However, over the last four weeks Salter has thrown five interceptions, matching his touchdown total during that span. He’s visibly lost a spark for this CU squad that’s been outscored 81-7 over the last two first halves.
After Salter was benched at halftime against the University of Arizona last week, Lewis saw some playing time in the nearly empty Folsom Field. He was able to connect with junior receiver Omarion Miller for his first collegiate touchdown pass.
“He’s throwing the heck out of the ball,” Sanders said about Lewis’ preparations. “He’s a young kid, he’s going to make young-kid mistakes, but it’s up to the staff to get him prepared and to get him ready so he can be concise and precise.”
A potential reason for Salter’s decline over the last couple of weeks could have been the play calling above him. In response, Shurmur has been stripped of his play calling duties after two full seasons.
Behind the scenes, Sanders pulled the plug on Shurmur’s scheme following the 53-7 loss to the University of Utah. That means the 52-17 loss to Arizona goes on the record of tight ends coach Brett Bartolone, who stepped up and called plays last Saturday.
“The coaches are accountable for what we’re doing,” Sanders said. “The way [the players are] performing is on us, it’s not on them. We gotta do a better job of putting them in the right situations to make the plays they need to make.”
While there were no glaring differences between Shurmur’s and Bartolone’s play books, Bartolone will get an opportunity to prove himself against a beatable Mountaineers defense on Saturday. Since Week four, West Virginia is allowing 38.3 points per game and has been especially vulnerable to strong passing attacks.
“They’re practicing right,” Sanders said about the team’s growth. “They’re fighting … they’re accountable.”
Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver, Joseph Williams, celebrating after a touchdown in the game against the University of Arizona at Folsom Field on Saturday, Nov. 1st, 2025. (Aspen Doust/CU Independent)
Colorado gets their first 10 a.m. MDT kickoff this year at Milan Puskar Stadium this Saturday. The Buffs need to win every game for the rest of the year to claim bowl eligibility, starting with the Mountaineers. The game will stream on TNT.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Baylan Wysuph at baylan.wysuph@colorado.edu
