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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Entertainment
Mike McDaniel

College Football World Reacts to Surprise Commitment of Julian Lewis, Top 2026 QB Prospect

Julian Lewis, who is universally considered to be the top quarterback prospect in the class of 2026, committed to play for USC on Tuesday.

The 6’1”, 185-pound Lewis boasted an offer list with some of the top programs in college football, including Alabama, Florida State, Georgia and Ohio State. Instead, the Carrolton, Ga., product chose to commit to a school on the West Coast in USC and play for coach Lincoln Riley, who has no shortage of quarterback success stories.

Riley has coached the likes of Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray and now Caleb Williams, who is expected to be one of the first players off the board in next spring’s NFL draft.

The commitment of Lewis puts the young quarterback in position to be the next success story under center for USC, which will be in its Big Ten infancy when Lewis arrives on campus ahead of the 2026-27 football season.

It’s safe to say that college football fans weren’t expecting Lewis to commit this soon. Here are some of the best reactions as the news broke on Tuesday.

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