Highly Touted USC Commit Graces Coveted Sports Magazine Cover

The sophomore QB is the youngest football player to ever be on the cover of Sports Illustrated

The USC Trojans are 3-0 and are cruising to a bye week and will battle the Arizona State Sun Devils for their first road game of the season. 

While that's all nice and dandy, and USC looks good, we're always thinking about the next in college football. With Caleb Williams leaving after this season (don't kid yourself), USC will have a new QB; however, everyone is looking at their latest big QB commit and the best of his class of 2026, Julian Lewis. 

The kid from Georgia committed to USC in late August and turned some heads, committing prior to his high school sophomore season. Almost unheard of, but it was a massive win for the program, and they hope he's here to stay. 

Lewis is now in the headlines once again, and for good reason. The five-star recruit became the youngest football player ever to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated. 

Julian Lewis, at 15 years old, is now the youngest football player ever to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

The five-star USC quarterback commit is the No. 1 prospect in the class of 2026 on @On3Recruits.

WeAreSC: https://t.co/rgetWYhUnc pic.twitter.com/0Qki6NmOfB

— Marshall Levenson (@MarshallRivals) September 13, 2023

The number one ranked player in his class is making his presence felt and is already embodying the Hollywood lifestyle. The kid has all the tools to be a great quarterback at the next level and possibly beyond. 

Surrounding Lewis on the cover is the title "Generation NIL." College football is very different from how we knew it was. Money rules the world, and college football is on that boat now. The 15-year-old already has eyes on some national brands and vice versa. In Los Angeles, the opportunities are at your front door, and Lewis would've been a fool to pass on that; luckily for himself and USC fans, he didn't. 

Although he can't accept any of the opportunities coming his way, he knows what he wants, and it's only a matter of time before it comes. On3's College Sports Business reporter, Pete Nakos, said one of Lewis' big reasons for coming to USC was the NIL opportunities. 

“Playing in front of the Los Angeles market could translate to more NIL opportunities. Similar to

Bronny James

‘

decision

to stay home, the City of Angels provides all the resources needed to shoot quality content for brands. Most companies who will want to align with him have offices in the nation’s second-largest city. Filming a commercial and zipping back to campus for practice could be an average day for Lewis.”

(via On3)

The stage is set, and this is only the beginning for Lewis and USC.