Auburn Tigers was still the least talked about program, concerning Julian Lewis. Till now the focus has been only on JuJu’s “phenomenal” USC visit and the QB’s prospects in Colorado Buffaloes based on his father’s bond with Deion Sanders. However, Hugh Freeze’s Tigers now seem to give USC and the Buffaloes a tough call.

At least, On3 National host and producer, Josh Newberg feels so. On the On3 Recruits podcast, the host puts Trojans coach Lincoln Riley and Coach Prime on high alert, giving them enough time to bring about the best offer for Lewis.  

Freeze’s recruiting revolution wins Lewis’ heart

Newberg highlights the point that Auburn offers that probably is lacking in USC and Colorado. First things first, the Tigers’ USP is that they always bring young talents under the spotlight through high school programs. “With Auburn, there’s certainly a school that remains an intriguing option. He was just on campus recently with his Carrollton High teammates. They won the seven-on-seven football competition that Auburn hosts for high school programs,” Newberg informed. 

But if anything stands out other than the high school programs, it’s the big switch that Freeze instilled in the recruiting front. As the host called to attention, “Auburn is exciting, the way the Tigers have recruited receivers since Hugh Freeze has gotten, there is something that really stands out to him. So Auburn I still view them as the biggest threat”. The Tigers HC mastered the art of recruiting by prioritizing quality over quantity, as they brought only five transfers between April 16 and April 30. However, USC is not ready to be convinced about the Tigers’ chances of landing Lewis, and Lincoln Riley has already come up with a drastic move. 

Riley bets on Lewis by sacrificing Underwood 

Ever since the high school phenom out of Carrollton has been committed to the USC Trojans, programs have been in a full-fledged attack mode, trying to flip the five-star QB. HC Riley along with all of Trojans Nation has been on edge. While the Auburn scene was still unknown to them, based on the neck-to-neck competitions from other teams like Georgia, Colorado, Texas, and Alabama, uncertainty loomed.

Even though the Trojans seemed to have given up on the hope of bringing in Lewis, coach Riley has been still living with the hope of seeing JuJu in hues of red and yellow. Not even for once did the ‘quarterback whisperer’ have second thoughts and make a huge sacrifice. As reported by On3’s Steve Wiltfong, Riley believed in Lewis so much that they never offered another QB in the 2025 class. What is even more surprising is the fact that they turned away the number one prospect in the nation, Bryce Underwood, who is out of Belleville High School in Michigan. 

Did all this transpire because Lewis too considers Riley to be his “QB Guru” and that his commitment to USC has ultimately come down to Riley? While the Trojans HC did take a risk by turning down Underwood, Deion Sanders is yet to make any sacrifice. It seems that Coach Prime is still counting on his bond with Lewis’ father to gain the trust of the QB.