Ja’Kobi Lane is all set to begin a new chapter as he heads to the draft. However, while he was impressing fans at USC, he fell victim to a heist in his own home. The WR took to social media to out the culprit.

Lane revealed on X that Brawley Tuitupou, a 3-star athlete from Mountain View, Utah, had made away with his gear from his locker room. The senior WR also shared a screenshot of Tuitupou’s social media account that showed the branded items, a post that appears to have been shared roughly five weeks ago. Lane also made sure to call out how wrong Tuitupou truly was.

“All yall kids out there just know this is simply unacceptable,” he wrote on X.

Tuitupou had visited USC on November 8 to attend the Northwestern game. He likely took Lane’s items on this day. There isn’t much chatter about the WR/defensive back heading to USC, but Lincoln Riley having him on campus was a sign that the Trojans were interested. Tuitupou offers a wide range of talents for programs to exploit, given his versatility on both sides of the ball. He would’ve made an interesting addition to the Trojans WR room at 6-4 and 175 pounds. Tuitupou also told Sports Illustrated that he prefers to play as a receiver.

But now that this incident has come to light, the path to the Coliseum seems to be permanently closed for Tuitupou. He hasn’t commented on the allegations, but has deleted the post about visiting USC from his Instagram account.

The 3-star athlete is still being recruited by many P4 programs, including Penn State, South Carolina, Ole Miss, and more. While he doesn’t have many stats on the board, programs seem to be interested in his potential. Tuitupou is also a basketball player and a track athlete. Apart from lining up at receiver and defensive back, he has also played as a tight end and other positions in the secondary. On 247Sports, Tuitupou has been ranked as the 90th-best athlete in the 2027 cycle and the 20th-best player in Utah.

But since this accusation comes from one of the top WRs of the outgoing class, it will hamper his recruitment. This surely is a massive letdown for Brawley Tuitupou, who was clearly a budding prospect on the radar in the 2027 class.

Ja’Kobi Lane, meanwhile, has to look out for where he lands in the 2026 draft.

Ja’Kobi Lane might be picked up by Denver

Lane and Makai Lemon were two big reasons behind USC’s massive improvement in the passing attack. However, it is expected that the former will likely be a round 2 or 3 pick. According to The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner, Ja’Kobi Lane can find a spot in Denver as the 94 overall pick.

He would be part of the supporting cast for Bo Nix, which already includes receivers like Courtland Sutton, Pat Bryant, and Troy Franklin. Lane, with his ability to keep the chains moving and his tendency to be successful in the red zone, can become a weapon for the Broncos. He’d be supporting a QB who is one of the most electric passers in the league.

Lane got to start much later in the season for USC, which is a reason why he isn’t finding a higher mention in mock drafts. But the WR can absolutely deliver when needed. He’ll be yet another WR who’d do the Trojans proud in the league. Sadly, he will carry one bad memory from his home as he enters a new one.