 Lemon at 2025 Big Ten Media Days | |
| No. 6 – USC Trojans | |
|---|---|
| Position | Wide receiver |
| Class | Junior |
| Personal information | |
| Born | June 2, 2004 [1] |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | La Mirada (La Mirada, California) Los Alamitos (Los Alamitos, California) |
| College | USC (2023–present) |
| Awards and highlights | |
| Stats at ESPN | |
Makai Lemon (born June 2, 2004) [1] is an American college football wide receiver for the USC Trojans.
Lemon is from Los Alamitos, California. [2] He grew up playing football as a wide receiver and was close friends with quarterback Malachi Nelson, with them playing for the same Pop Warner team and winning a national championship. [3] He initially attended La Mirada High School, where he caught 57 receptions for 784 yards and five touchdowns as a freshman, in addition to four interceptions as a defensive back on defense. [4] He received his first scholarship offer from the Colorado Buffaloes during the first month of his freshman season. [5]
After his freshman season, Lemon transferred to Los Alamitos High School as a sophomore, where he joined Malachi Nelson. [3] In the spring 2021 season, he caught 43 passes for 756 yards and nine touchdowns, being named first-team all-state by MaxPreps. [6] He then recorded 65 receptions for 1,062 yards and 15 touchdowns as a junior in 2021. [7] He was named first-team junior All-American and first-team all-state by MaxPreps. [6] As a senior, he was named first-team All-American and first-team all state after totaling 69 receptions for 1,044 yards and 12 touchdowns. [6]
Lemon was an Under Armour All-American and an invitee to the Polynesian Bowl. [6] He was ranked a five-star recruit and the 13th-best player nationally by ESPN. [8] He initially committed to play college football for the Oklahoma Sooners along with Malachi Nelson. [9] However, he later flipped his commitment along with Nelson to the USC Trojans, after coach Lincoln Riley left the Sooners for the Trojans. [10]
As a freshman at USC in 2023, Lemon saw limited playing time and caught six passes for 88 yards. [11] Towards the end of the season, he played at cornerback as well as wide receiver due to injuries to the Trojans' players. [12] In 2024, Lemon had a breakout game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, totaling 256 all-purpose yards while scoring a touchdown. [13] He saw more action as the 2024 season went on and finished as USC's leading receiver with 52 receptions for 764 yards. [14]
| Season | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| 2023 | USC | 9 | 0 | 6 | 88 | 14.7 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| 2024 | USC | 12 | 6 | 52 | 764 | 14.7 | 3 | — | — | — | — |
| 2025 | USC | 6 | 5 | 44 | 682 | 15.5 | 6 | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 1 |
| Career | 27 | 11 | 102 | 1,534 | 15.0 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 1 | |
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