He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini, where he was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and earned consensus All-American honors in 2023.

[2][3] As a true freshman for the Illinois Fighting Illini in 2020, Newton played in all eight games with two starts and had 23 tackles and 1.5 sacks.

[6][7] Newton declared for the 2024 NFL draft following the 2023 season, where he was named a consensus All-American and the Big 10's Nagurski–Woodson Defensive Player of the Year.

[17][18] Newton recorded his first career sack and fumble recovery in the Week 8 game against the Chicago Bears.

[10] His cousin Pro Wells played tight end for the Philadelphia Stars of the United States Football League (USFL) in the early 2020s.