5-Star Recruit Makai Lemon Decommits from Oklahoma After Lincoln Riley's Exit
Lincoln Riley leaving Oklahoma to become head coach at USC is starting to have ramifications on the Sooners' recruiting.
Makai Lemon, a 5-star athlete who's ranked as the No. 2 athlete nationally in the class of 2023 by 247Sports, announced that he has decommitted from Oklahoma and will not be reopening his recruitment.
Lemon, a native of Southern California, told 247Sports that he made his decision to de-commit from Oklahoma when he found out receivers coach Dennis Simmons was joining Riley at USC. He said the coaching staff has expressed interest in him becoming a Trojan.
"I didn't want to de-commit right away until I knew what coach Simmons was doing,” Lemon said. "He was a big reason why I committed to Oklahoma in the first place. ... I got a call from coach Simmons this week too and he's excited about the opportunity. He knows they can do big things at USC and he wants me to be a part of that."
Lemon added that he plans on visiting USC and expects to make a decision "in the next week or two." He admitted that the situation is intriguing because he grew up as a fan of the Trojans and he also has a strong desire to play for Riley and his staff.
"It was tough to make the decision to leave home," he said. "I'm a SoCal guy and love it out here, but I wanted to play for those coaches in that offense.
"Now the coaches that I love are right here at USC, the school I always thought I would be going to. Me and Malachi [Nelson] are planning to go up there tomorrow for a visit and I think I could be ready to make my decision pretty soon here."
Lemon is a versatile player who has impressed on both sides of the ball. 247Sports national recruiting analyst Greg Biggins describes him as "a twitchy two-way athlete who shows elite upside as a receiver or a cornerback. ... He works hard off the field and has all the tools to project as a Power Five starter and future high-round NFL draft pick."
