Julian “JuJu” Lewis, one of the nation’s top quarterback recruits, announced Thursday that he will play for Coach Sanders and his Colorado football team, making him the likely successor to Sanders’ quarterback son, Shedeur, in 2025.

Lewis, who plays for Carrollton High School in Georgia, previously committed to play at Southern California but continued to take recruiting visits to other campuses, including Colorado, Georgia and Indiana. He recently reneged on his commitment to USC and picked the Buffaloes before the start of the early signing period for recruits on Dec. 4.

Lewis made the announcement on the Pat McAfee Show.

‘Of course, it was big for me just coming in after Shedeur, just seeing what he’s done to Colorado and what he’s turned it into,’ Lewis said on the show. ‘It’s definitely a blessing getting put into this position coming after him and his dad. I couldn’t beat it.’

Lewis ranks as the nation’s No. 2 pocket-passer recruit for 2026, according to ESPN, behind Bryce Underwood, who committed to LSU. The university community in Boulder embraced Lewis during his visits to the school, practically begging him to play for the Buffaloes. The Sink restaurant on university hill near campus even crafted a burger in his honor – a double cheeseburger with shredded lettuce, red onion, bacon and A-1 aioli.

How Julian Lewis fits into Deion Sanders’ plans

His decision answers a big question for the Buffs in 2025: Who will be their starting quarterback after Shedeur?

Shedeur Sanders is expected to be a top draft pick in the NFL next year after exhausting his college eligibility this season. His backup, Ryan Staub, started one game in Shedeur’s absence in 2023 – a 23-17 loss at Utah and attempted only three passes in the first 10 games of the season in 2024.

If the Buffs hadn’t landed Lewis, they likely would have shopped for a quarterback in the transfer portal.

Lewis said on the show he will enroll at Colorado in January.

‘Coach Prime’s always said the best man’s gonna play,’ Lewis said of Deion Sanders. ‘And that’s really what I wanted, was to be able to come in and compete and start as a freshman. I wouldn’t have much fun sitting on the bench.’

Lewis becomes the latest big fish reeled in by Sanders, who previously brought in the nation’s top offensive line recruit (Jordan Seaton), top cornerback (Cormani McClain) and No. 1 overall recruit from 2022 (Travis Hunter). McClain has since left the program, while Seaton and Hunter have been keys to CU’s success this year in its quest for the College Football Playoff.

The Buffs (8-2) play Kansas (4-6) Saturday at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

The NFL has alerted team security directors and the players union about criminals targeting professional athletes’ homes, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

The memo sent to all 32 teams stated that organized criminals are increasingly targeting these homes, including the burglaries of Kansas City Chiefs players Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce in early October.

The Athletic’s Diana Russini shared the memo on X.

In it, the NFL specified that ‘law enforcement officials have noted these groups appear to exploit team schedules to target athletes’ homes on game days.’

The memo goes on to detail surveillance and methods of entry, social media recommendations and home security recommendations.

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

The NFL states in the memo that ‘burglary groups appear to be gathering information on potential victims through public records, media reports and social media.’

The league recommends players and teams wait until the end of the day to post updates on social media with check-ins or daily activities.

Per NBC News, senior law enforcement officials have confirmed that the FBI is working with local law enforcement agencies to determine if these recent burglaries are connected to a transnational crime ring. Those officials say the investigation is ongoing and subject to change.

A spokesperson for the FBI Office of Public Affairs did not confirm or deny the investigation, citing longstanding Department of Justice policy, according to Pelissero.

Mahomes’ and Kelce’s homes were burglarized on Sunday, Oct. 6, a day before the Chiefs played the New Orleans Saints on ‘Monday Night Football.’

Belton, Missouri police reportedly were called to Mahomes’ residence after a member of his security team called in the incident. The Cass County Sheriff’s Office stated the investigation is ongoing but characterized the incident as ‘Burglary/Breaking & Entering,’ per police documents obtained by The Kansas City Star.

‘Obviously, it’s frustrating, disappointing,’ Mahomes said last week. ‘I can’t get into too many of the details because the investigation is still ongoing. But obviously it’s something that you don’t want to happen to, really anybody, but obviously yourself.’

Kelce’s home was broken into shortly after kickoff on ‘Monday Night Football’ on Oct. 7. Documents show that $20,000 was taken from his home and the back door was damaged.

ESPN talk show ‘Around the Horn’ will go off the air next summer, ending a more than two-decade run on weekday afternoons.

Paired with ‘Pardon the Interruption’ − another show overseen by ESPN’s Eric Rydholm − ‘Around the Horn’ has been an afternoon staple for ESPN viewers, leading to heightened national profiles for regular panelists such as Woody Paige, Mina Kimes, Jackie MacMullan, Tim Cowlishaw, J.A. Adande and others.

‘Around the Horn’ began in 2002 with Max Kellerman as its original host. Reali took over hosting duties in 2004 and has remained in the role ever since.

The ESPN spokesperson declined to provide any official comment, but did say the show’s lengthy run will be celebrated at some point before it goes off the air.

Colorado coach Deion Sanders is now working as the co-host of a new weekly entertainment talk show that recently debuted as his football team makes a push for the College Football Playoff.

The first of his 20 one-hour episodes aired Tuesday night on Tubi, the online streaming platform owned by the Fox Corporation. The show is called “We Got Time Today,” which raises an obvious question:

How does Sanders have the time to co-host this show during such a critical part of the year for him as the coach of the Buffaloes?

His co-host, Rocsi Diaz, asked him that early in the first episode.

“How does he even have time to do this and coach? … What do you tell them?”

Sanders responded that it’s part of his recruiting strategy – to reach potential recruits and their families in ways that other coaches don’t or can’t.

“Well, this is like a form of recruiting for me, because a lot of the parents are … our viewers with Tubi,” Sanders said. “Tubi does a wonderful job of reaching all ethnicities … They reach everybody. And this is a tremendous platform for me to talk to some of the parents out there.’

When, where is new Deion Sanders show filmed?

Tubi didn’t respond to messages seeking comment about when and where the episodes are recorded, but the company previously said in a news release that the show would air each Tuesday.

The first episode was recorded earlier this week after the Buffaloes beat Utah at home last weekend, 49-24. The episode showed a video clip from that game and referenced the birthday of Diaz, which was Sunday. Diaz attended the game in Boulder Saturday, according to her Instagram. Several workers on the show are listed from the Denver-Boulder area. So it doesn’t appear Sanders is jetting off to Hollywood every Sunday to film this.

The University of Colorado also didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking information about how it fits into the coach’s schedule.

Sanders, 57, does have a reputation as an accomplished multitasker. As head coach of the Buffs, he appears on two other local shows every week during the season to discuss his team, all while filming continues on a documentary series about his program. In 1992, he played in an NFL game at Miami on the same day he flew to Pittsburgh for a baseball game as a player for the Atlanta Braves (though he did not play in the latter).

Sanders and Colorado have two regular-season games remaining but also could play in the Big 12 Conference championship game Dec. 7, followed by playoff or bowl games. They play Kansas (4-6) at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City Saturday on Fox. Just like last week’s Colorado game on Fox, the network is expected to promote Sanders’ new Tubi show during the broadcast. Fox agreed to buy Tubi in 2020 for $440 million.

How is show part of Deion Sanders’ recruiting strategy?

Sanders does things differently in recruiting. He hasn’t made off-campus visits to recruits’ homes or high schools, unlike other coaches. He has his reasons for this, including saving the university money and downplaying the importance of off-campus visits in the age of the transfer portal. He also has succeeded with the Buffs (8-2), gunning for a Big 12 championship in his second season on the job. Meanwhile, the start of the early signing period in recruiting is Dec. 4.

With a platform like this, Sanders casts a wider net. Tubi bills itself as the “most watched free TV and movie streaming service in the U.S.’ A news release promoting the show said it would take “viewers on a lively journey through the realms of news, culture, entertainment and sports.”

Peyton Manning offers Deion Sanders advice

The first episode featured hip-hop icon Ice Cube as an in-person guest. It also featured a video appearance by former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning.

“I’m a little jealous,” Manning said to Sanders on the clip. “You’re co-hosting your show with Rocsi Diaz, someone with a ton of experience and talent, while I somehow got roped into doing Monday night with my little brother Eli as my cohost. It’s just not fair at all.”

Manning then offered some guidance of sorts.

“Coach, I know this show like everything you do is going to be a huge success, but if I can humbly offer you just one piece of advice, it’s this: If you happen to play my Tennessee Volunteers in a bowl game or the playoff this year, skip the game, and focus on the show instead, OK?” Manning said. “Is that cool? Thank you very much. Congratulations again to both of you.”

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

With seven weeks remaining in the 2024 NFL season, the playoff contenders are coming into sharp focus. More than half of the teams in the league now have overwhelming probabilities of making or missing the postseason.

At top, nine teams have 90% chances or better of earning one of the 14 playoff slots, according to Next Gen Stats’ playoff probabilities. Nine other teams have 1% or less chance of making the playoffs. That said, none of those teams are mathematically eliminated.

Two teams on opposite ends of the playoff spectrum kick off Week 12 schedule on Thursday night’s Prime Video game at 8:15 p.m. ET. The Pittsburgh Steelers (8-2) fresh off their two-point win over AFC North rival Baltimore Ravens travel to Cleveland to play the Browns (2-8). The Steelers are favored by just about field goal, according to BetMGM as of Thursday morning.

NFL playoff picture and NFL standings

Here are all 32 teams’ chances of making the playoffs this season and how a win or loss this weekend would raise or lower those chances, according to Next Gen Stats:

Unable to view our graphics? Click here to see them.

The Steelers aren’t the only team this week with a chance to solidify their playoff chances at top of the bracket. A half dozen games will pit some of the most and least likely playoff teams with the least likely, according to Next Gen Stats. Three of this weekend’s games with a broad range of playoff impacts:

Kansas City Chiefs 9-1 at Panthers 3-7: Even if the Chiefs extend their losing streak to two in the 1 p.m. ET Sunday game on CBS, neither team will alter their chances of making the playoffs by winning or losing. BetMGM odds: Chiefs by 11 points.

Baltimore Ravens 7-4 at Los Angeles Chargers 7-3: Both teams have more than a 90% chance of making the playoffs. Regardless of the outcome of the Monday night football game, both will remain top AFC contenders. The Chargers could strengthen their playoff probabilities the most with a win. BetMGM odds: Ravens by three points.

Arizona Cardinals 6-4 at Seattle Seahawks 5-5: With a fifth-consecutive win in the 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday game on FOX, the Cardinals could extend their lead in the NFC West and boost their playoff chances. With a loss, the Seahawks’ playoffs hopes would take an 11 percentage point leap, according to Next Gen Stats. BetMGM odds: Even.

NFL team schedule and results

Indiana’s Curt Cignetti is known for saying, ‘I win. Google me.’ Well, that’s just what Kurtis Rourke did after he spoke with Cignetti on the phone.
Can Indiana sustain this success? Others have tried and failed, but Curt Cignetti’s winning track record and bravado provide hope for a lasting effect.
Indiana’s game with Ohio State carries major CFP bracket implications. Hoosiers would quiet skeptics with an upset.

A struggling program hired a winning coach.

A winning coach found his quarterback.

Basic in its formation, extraordinary in its effect.

To call what Indiana’s first-year coach Curt Cignetti and transfer quarterback Kurtis Rourke teamed up to achieve a revival would be misleading. To revive something, it had to previously exist.

Indiana never existed like this, 10-0 while the temperature drops and the leaves fall, pegged No. 5 in the College Football Playoff rankings, with a shot at the Big Ten championship.

Skeptics fairly question Indiana’s strength of schedule, but there can be no arguing these facts: The Hoosiers will enter Saturday’s game against No. 2 Ohio State with a chance to increase their program-record season win total, and if they win in Columbus, that signals they can win the whole darn thing.

If you call this the biggest game in Indiana football history, you wouldn’t be accused of hyperbole.

“In my time covering the program, it’s by far the most significant (game),” said longtime sportswriter Pete DiPrimio. His coverage of the Hoosiers spans nearly 40 years and dates to 1988. He currently writes for Indiana’s athletic department.

 “This is remarkable,” DiPrimio added. “In so many ways, it’s amazing.”

It started with a coach calling a quarterback.

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Why Kurtis Rouke googled Curt Cignetti

Thirteen transfers followed Cignetti from James Madison to Indiana as part of a massive roster overhaul. Those ex-Dukes brought to Indiana a winning culture. They’d helped James Madison win 11 games last season.

Cignetti still needed a quarterback.

He found one from Ohio – the Bobcats, not the Buckeyes.

Rourke, an overlooked recruit from Ontario, Canada, secured Ohio as his only Division I offer as a prep prospect. Rourke’s brother, Nathan, previously quarterbacked the Bobcats.

Rourke’s 16-6 record in his final two seasons as Ohio’s starter appealed to Cignetti, whose portal preference centers on starters who know what it takes to win, rather than talented backups who lack game reps.

With Rourke in the portal, Cignetti phoned a quarterback nicknamed “The Maple Missile” at Ohio.

“Everything he was saying on the phone, I was like, ‘Wow, that’s really impressive,’” Rourke said recently on “The Jim Rome Show.”

Neither Cignetti nor Rourke were household names last winter, and Rourke questioned whether Cignetti’s credentials might be too good to be true.

A good quarterback does his homework, so Rourke fact-checked Cignetti’s résumé.

In doing so, Rourke followed the advice Cignetti would later state during an Indiana news conference, when the coach famously said: “I win. Google me.”

“I did Google him,” Rourke said on “Jim Rome.”

Rourke’s research revealed a coach who’s never had a losing record in his now 14 seasons as a head coach, from Division II to the Championship Subdivision to the Bowl Subdivision. Cignetti brought Indiana some bravado, too.

While addressing Indiana fans during a basketball game last December, a day after his hire, Cignetti uncorked a zinger.

“I’ve never taken a backseat to anybody and don’t plan on starting now,” Cignetti said, setting up a punch line that set the crowd roaring. “Purdue sucks, and so do Michigan and Ohio State.”

You said it, coach. Now, prove it.

Can Ohio State avoid another dark day?

The Buckeyes don’t lose to Indiana. They just don’t.

We’re talking about The Ohio State University against a basketball school.

After Earle Bruce’s Buckeyes lost to Indiana in 1987, the school’s first loss to the Hoosiers in 36 years, Bruce dubbed it “the darkest day in Ohio State football” from his purview, anyway.

The brass agreed. Ohio State fired Bruce a month later.

No pressure, Ryan Day.

Since Indiana tied the Buckeyes in 1990, Ohio State ripped off 29 consecutive victories in this series, most of them blowouts.

Curt Cignetti makes Indiana sustained success possible

The Hoosiers tasted fleeting success before now.

Indiana fans who’ve gone gray at the temples perhaps recall the 1967 Hoosiers sharing the Big Ten crown and being No. 4 in the final AP poll before losing the Rose Bowl to Southern California to finish 9-2.

A dozen years later, Lee Corso coached the Hoosiers to a Holiday Bowl victory to cap an eight-win season remembered fondly by Indiana fans of a certain generation.

Eight wins became a perpetual ceiling. Before the 2019 season, an Indiana fan site spawned a catchy hashtag: #9WINDIANA.

As in, could Tom Allen’s Hoosiers reach rare air with nine victories? They hadn’t reached nine victories since 1967.

The 2019 Hoosiers came up two points short of a ninth win, finished 8-5, then went 6-2 and rose as high as No. 7 in the coaches poll in the following season shortened by COVID-19, before the bottom dropped out.

NIL and immediate eligibility for transfers changed college football’s playbook for engineering a turnaround. Used to be, new coaches asked for a runway long enough to stack recruiting classes and gradually build steam. Now, a portal raid makes microwaved rejuvenation possible.

Peep Deion Sanders, whose transfer-laden Colorado Buffaloes are 8-2 and in playoff contention, two years after Colorado went 1-11.

No longer is the playoff exclusive to blue bloods, either. Cincinnati qualified for the four-team playoff in 2021. TCU played for the national championship two seasons ago. Washington reached the title game last season.

With a base level of administration support, a little NIL pocket change, a solid coach, effective transfer evaluation, and an accommodating schedule, programs from Indiana to SMU to Arizona State storm into playoff contention.

The question becomes: Is the success sustainable, or a microwaved meal that soon will leave the program hungry again?

Sonny Dykes melded 14 transfers before TCU’s 2022 season with a veteran starting quarterback he inherited, Max Duggan, and star wide receiver Quentin Johnston. TCU won 13 games in that first season for Dykes, a year-over-year improvement of eight victories. The uprising didn’t last. TCU has totaled 11 victories in the two seasons since that magical 2022 run.

Florida State won 13 games last season. Then came a mass exodus, and Mike Norvell’s next portal haul flopped. The Seminoles collapsed.

Already, Cignetti increased Indiana’s win total by seven. His lineup is loaded with seniors, most of them transfers. Indiana’s current recruiting class ranks 13th in the 18-team Big Ten.

Could Indiana count on another portal plunder?

The ex-Dukes who transferred to Indiana knew Cignetti’s systems. They understood his culture. That’s a leg up.

Winning is now possible at places like Indiana, but it’s still harder to sustain success than at places like Ohio State, where national top-five recruiting classes are a rite of winter.

But, with Wisconsin, Iowa and Michigan State down, and Michigan still in transition after Jim Harbaugh’s departure, this would seem like an opportunistic window for a Big Ten program to climb the ladder and perch on a higher rung.

Indiana understands Cignetti at least gives it a chance at a winning hand. The Hoosiers doubled his pay by awarding him an eight-year, $72 million contract last week.

By now, nobody needs to Google Cignetti to know, he wins.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer. Subscribe to read all of his columns.