2025 top-10 prospect and five-star QB Julian Lewis ‘impressed’ with vision for Indiana football after visit to Bloomington

Indiana football hosted, arguably, the most talented player in program history for a visit over the weekend in five-star quarterback and top-10 prospect Julian Lewis. While the 2025 prospect is still committed to USC, this visit was a significant step for the Hoosiers, the new coaching staff and sent a message to the rest of the country that Indiana now has connections and a vision it may not have had before.

Lewis visited Indiana this past weekend in addition to a handful of other prospects and came away ‘impressed’ with the vision that Curt Cignetti and the rest of the Indiana football program had.

“Lewis and his family were impressed by what Curt Cignetti envisions for Indiana football,” Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney said on social media. “Will he go there? Very unlikely but still a lot of pub around his visit.”

Heading into the weekend and over the last few months of Indiana’s involvement, most people were wondering, why Indiana? The connection with new Indiana football quarterbacks coach Tino Sunseri — someone Lewis has known since his childhood.

“Coach Tino is my guy,” Lewis previously told 247Sports. “I’ve known him since I was eight-years old. He’s honestly the first college coach to notice me.”

This was a significant step for Indiana and one that shows the type of recruiter and also relationship builder that Curt Cignetti and his staff are. A key reason for Cignetti’s hiring at Indiana was his ability to develop quarterbacks, a position that is a high priority at this level and one that Indiana has struggled with over the last decade. Cignetti’s resume with quarterbacks is why Indiana Athletic Director Scott Dolson was intrigued by Cignetti early on.

“We wanted someone who was a proven evaluator and developer of talent. And we really wanted someone also who had worked with quarterbacks,” Dolson said about Cignetti during his introductory press conference. “Quarterbacks was really important to us.”

Indiana already beat out numerous high-major programs for four-star and top-15 QB in the 2024 class with Tyler Cherry. So, there is now momentum on the recruiting trail at the quarterback position.

Lewis is as talented as they come. In two high school seasons, he’s thrown for 6,952 yards with 93 touchdowns and just 14 interceptions. This past season he had 3,094 yards with 48 touchdowns and just two interceptions, per MaxPreps.

The Carrollton (Ga.) quarterback was originally in the 2026 class before reclassifying to 2025 in January. He is ranked the No. 9 overall player in the 247Sports Composite rankings.

The major recruiting weekend that included a visit from Lewis also included a commitment from three-star defensive back Jaylen Bell — someone with numerous SEC offers including LSU and Georgia.

Regardless of if Indiana lands a commitment from Lewis or not, receiving a visit from this type of player is significant in every facet.

SEE ALSO: ‘There’s a lot of talk about the program for the first time since any of us can remember’: Anonymous Big Ten Coaches talk about Curt Cignetti and Indiana football

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