All-American receiver Makai Lemon headed to NFL, skipping his final season at USC
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/12/2025 (256 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — All-American receiver Makai Lemon is skipping his final season at Southern California to enter the NFL draft.
Lemon won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s top receiver this season after catching 79 passes for 1,156 yards — tops in the Power Four conferences — and 11 touchdowns for the Trojans (9-3). The 5-foot-11 wideout with a knack for acrobatic catches and game-changing plays earned first-team All-America honors from The Associated Press.
Lemon grew up 25 miles from USC’s campus in Orange County. After playing sparingly as a freshman in 2023, he caught 131 passes for 1,928 yards and 14 TDs during his two full seasons with the Trojans.
“The opportunity to play this game in the city that raised me was something I envisioned long before it became reality,” Lemon wrote when announcing his expected decision on social media Wednesday. “Competing in front of my family, friends and community made this experience even more meaningful, and I’ll always be proud to have represented this university and this city.”
Lemon is USC’s second Biletnikoff Award winner, joining Marqise Lee (2012).
Ja’Kobi Lane, Lemon’s friend and fellow starting receiver at USC, also declared for the draft earlier this week.
USC coach Lincoln Riley already announced that both of his top receivers would skip the Trojans’ trip to the Alamo Bowl to face TCU on Dec. 30. Riley’s team is expected be without roughly a dozen starters between opt-outs and injury recoveries.
___
AP college football: https://apnews.com/college-football