Makai Lemon, a 5-foot-11, 190 pound sophomore, enters the 2024 season with high praise from his USC teammates. Both his quarterback Miller Moss and the defense’s starting free safety Kamari Ramsay listed him as a player of note for the Trojans in the offseason. While other receivers might garner more attention from the outside, Lemon’s contributions last year and in the offseason were noted by his team. The dynamic playmaker looks for a breakout season this year.
As a recruit, Lemon was the No. 43 player overall and the No. 7 wide receiver in the 247Sports Composite in the 2023 recruiting class. He was the fourth-highest-rated commitment for the Trojans behind his high school quarterback Malachi Nelson and fellow receivers Zachariah Branch and Duce Robinson.
As a freshman last year Lemon caught only seven passes. The veterans in the wide receiver room, Tahj Washington, Brendon Rice, Dorian Singer, and Mario Williams — along with aforementioned classmates Branch and Robinson — received the vast majority of targets from quarterback Caleb Williams. Lemon also had five kickoff returns, averaging a team-high 18.8 yards per return. He showed his athleticism when he temporarily moved over to cornerback, a position he excelled at in high school.
Look for Lemon’s role in the offense to greatly increase in 2024. He is arguably the most polished receiver among his 2022 enrollees, which also include Ja’Kobi Lane from Red Mountain High School in Mesa, Arizona. Lemon has an elite combination of speed and explosiveness that allows him to create separation in his routes. He has been praised for his reliability to catch the ball underneath and in traffic with his great hands. He is an all-around athlete who shows his playmaking skills with the ability to run clean routes and become a threat to score each time he touches the ball after the catch.
As the backup to Williams in previous seasons, Miller Moss has built up a lot of confidence with countless reps with the 2022 receiving class. Moss, Lemon and the other freshmen receivers put on a show in the Holiday Bowl. While Lemon only had two catches, they averaged 37.5 yards per completion. It would not be surprising, from what we saw of Lemon at Los Alamitos High School and in the Holiday Bowl, to see him fill the role played by 1,000-yard receiver Tahj Washington in 2023.
Visit our friends at Fighting Irish Wire, Buffaloes Wire, and Ducks Wire. Follow our newest sites, UW Huskies Wire and UCLA Wire.
Check out more NFL draft coverage with the USA TODAY Sports NFL Draft Hub.