Saturday’s victory over Iowa was another spectacular game for USC wide receiver Makai Lemon. The junior finished the contest with 10 catches for 153 yards and a touchdown, while also adding in one carry for one yard on the ground for good measure.
Lemon is now the first Power Four receiver to surpass the 1,000-yard mark on the 2025 season, currently having 1,090 yards and eight touchdowns. He is also the 10th different USC wideout to surpass the 1,000-yard mark in the past 15 seasons, a remarkable accomplishment for the program.
Following the game, both USC head coach Lincoln Riley and Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz had high praise for Lemon.
“He’s a fearless player, always has been ever since I’ve met him when he was a sophomore in high school,” Riley said. “He’s always had just that fearless quality to him, and that continues to show up to this day. He’s worked hard at his craft, and obviously we all have a lot of confidence in him and our other weapons. You have to step up against a good defense like that, and have to go make some of those types of competitive plays. And obviously when anybody else is in the area, we feel like that’s an advantage for us with him every time we step on the field.”
“Number six is as good as I’ve seen,” Ferentz said. “And going back 20+ years, but he’s a really outstanding player. They’ve got a couple of other guys too, but he’s really good.”
At this point, Lemon has shown that he is not just a candidate for the Biletnikoff Award—presented annually to the top receiver in the country—but the favorite. If Lemon can finish the season strong, he has a great chance to become the first Trojan to take home the honor since Marqise Lee in 2012.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC receiver Makai Lemon continues to prove he should be Biletnikoff Award favorite
Reporting by Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
