Surprise, surprise! Coach Prime has done it again, and the Colorado Buffaloes once again steal a top southern recruit from the clutches of two blue-blooded SEC powerhouses.

Ju’Juan Johnson, a 4-Star recruit from the state of Louisiana, ranks as the No. 4 player in his state, the No. 28 athlete, and the No. 225 player overall for the 2024 class, with a composite score of 0.917, and he’s now a member of the Colorado Buffaloes.

As a result, Colorado’s recruiting class for 2024 now ranks 12th, and is right ahead of Ohio State (13th) and Clemson (14th).

Johnson received offers from several of the nation’s top programs, including Alabama, Georgia, Texas, and many others, but ultimately narrowed his choices down to three — the Florida Gators, the LSU Tigers, and the Buffaloes.

On Saturday, he announced his choice would be Colorado, which wasn’t too big of a surprise, considering how quickly Johnson’s commitment process sped up, following his visit to Boulder last weekend.

Following his commitment, Johnson discussed how he was drawn to the University of Colorado because he wants to be a part of the foundation of a championship program, and because he felt Coach Prime was special.

“I just feel that it’s more than football with [Coach Prime],” Johnson said. “Being a football player with him is more than just throwing a ball, or catching a ball, guarding somebody. He’s going to teach me how to become a man.”

Johnson was recruited to most of those top programs as a defensive back, but he was an incredible quarterback in high school, and his abilities there shouldn’t be slept on for a Buffaloes team without clear quarterback answers for after 2023.

While Deion Sanders has already attracted a bevy of cornerback talent to Colorado’s front range, the Buffaloes only have a couple of 3-Stars in the quarterback pipeline for the future. Now, if Shedeur Sanders forgoes the 2024 NFL Draft, that won’t be an issue, but there’s a very good chance he’ll be one of the draft’s more-coveted quarterbacks.

With that in mind, CU has to start preparing for the possibility they’ll need a new starting quarterback in 2024. Maybe Ju’Juan Johnson, even though he would be a true freshman, is that guy.

It would help explain why Johnson might have chosen Colorado.

If he’s looking to play defensive back, the University of Florida (surprisingly) has a clearer path to an eventual starting role than the Buffaloes do. However, if he’s looking to play quarterback at the next level, Colorado is head-and-shoulders more appealing than the rest.

He would be LSU’s fourth-highest-rated quarterback recruit on their roster, and he’d be the second-highest-rated at Florida, but he’d be projected to be backing up an elite 5-Star talent who’s also from the 2024 class.

Could that have been the deciding factor that made Johnson choose Boulder? Time will tell.