Colorado QB Julian Lewis celebrates 3x NFL Pro Bowler's words of wisdom at sister's graduation

Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Julian Lewis hailed three-time NFL Pro Bowler Jonathan Vilma for the speech he gave at Lewis' sister's graduation ceremony on Wednesday.

Lewis' sister graduated from the University of Miami. Vilma, meanwhile, spent four seasons as a member of the Hurricanes from 2000 to 2003. He was invited back to be a guest speaker at the graduation ceremony on Thursday.

"Jonathon Vilma gave an amazing speech at my sister's graduation about the impact that my strength Coach Swasey had on his life and career," Lewis wrote on X.

During his speech, Vilma paid tribute to Miami's strength and conditioning coach Andreu Swasey.

"The one thing that I almost failed to mention in my story was when Swasey told me how good I could be and I didn't even know it yet," Vilma said. "He planted that seed in me and I think about what would've happened had he not said that."

"I had never been told by anybody how good I could be, it was always how good I was. So, when Swasey told me that I said, you know what, there's no way I can let him down."

This speech resonated with Julian Lewis, who is starting his college career. He finished his first spring practice at Colorado under head coach Deion Sanders.

Julian Lewis is competing for the starting QB job with transfer Kaidon Salter

Julian Lewis committed to the Colorado Buffaloes in November, choosing to play under Coach Prime to start his college career. He was the No. 12-ranked recruit in the 2025 class, according to ESPN. As a five-star recruit, there are high expectations on his shoulders, but that does not mean he will be given the starting job as a freshman.

In the offseason, head coach Deion Sanders brought Kaidon Salter into the team as a transfer from the Liberty Flames. Salter is entering his senior season after spending the past two seasons as the starter of the Flames. He is looking to improve his stock before the 2026 NFL draft.

Salter likely would not have chosen to transfer to Colorado if he did not think he had a good chance of winning the starting job. So, it will not be an easy path for Julian Lewis, with the two potentially locked in a quarterback battle.