USC WR Makai Lemon Declares For Draft

A consensus top 50 recruit out of Los Alamitos HS (CA), Lemon surprised many when he committed to Oklahoma just before his junior year. By November, though, the nearby Trojans got in his ear and earned the flip before his junior year was even over. He remained so committed to USC that, the next summer, they were the only official visit he took before eventually signing his Letter of Intent on early National Signing Day in 2022.

Lemon was buried on the depth chart as a true freshman, only catching six passes while Caleb Williams threw to Tahj Washington and Brenden Rice. The next year, though, Lemon led the Trojans in receptions (52) and receiving yards (764), while big-bodied fellow sophomore Ja’Kobi Lane dominated the redzone targets to the tune of 12 touchdowns.

This year was a different story. Lemon delivered on expectations of a breakout campaign, setting new personal highs with the team lead in receptions (79), receiving yards (1,156), and receiving touchdowns (11). Lemon put it all on the field this year, and he needed to. Lacking elite speed and weighing with a 5-foot-11, 195-pound frame, Lemon is not about to be a combine riser.

What Lemon does have, though, is an almost professional feel for the game and how to get open. He sees the ball to his hands and becomes an immediate YAC-threat. Again, it’s not speed that earns him those yards after catch but crafty, fierce, intentional running that makes him so dangerous with the ball in his hands. His ability to make acrobatic, highlight-reel catches helped him earn the school’s second ever Biletnikoff Award (given to the NCAA’s best wide receiver).

In Dane Brugler of The Athletic’s midseason rankings, Lemon checked in as the 20th overall prospect and WR3 on the board, behind Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson and Ohio State’s Carnell Tate. In his recent Big Board, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. also slotted Lemon in as WR3 but had him all the way up at No. 10 overall. In a class full of talented pass catchers, Lemon appears early on to be a consensus top three receiver with an easy first-round projection. If teams can look past his size and see him as more than just an elite slot receiver, he could hear his name called very early on Day 1.