Here We Go Again: LA Times Reporting Two Former USC Athletes Allegedly Received Gifts
Just when Trojans fans thought they could fully enjoy football again, those two hated words rear their ugly heads: “Impermissible benefits.”
The Los Angeles Times reported this morning that Scott Schenter, a figure in the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office scandal, gave cash and gifts to two former USC athletes while they were in school. Former football player Joe McKnight was given a car and an airline ticket, while former basketball player Davon Jefferson got approximately $3,700.
Schenter, a former employee in the L.A. Assessor’s office, is being investigated for giving illegal tax breaks to wealthy residents, and his connections to McKnight and Jefferson were found among hundreds of emails claimed by the Times. The USC athletic department announced that they immediately reported the claims to the NCAA.
It’s for situations like this that Pat Haden was hired as athletic director two years ago. McKnight and Jefferson allegedly received these gifts in 2008 and 2009, back when Mike Garrett was in charge of the program and not paying close enough attention to compliance. It’s not clear yet what these new developments will mean for USC or for the current football team, but we may soon find out just how well Haden patched up relations between USC and the NCAA.
Read Haden’s official response to the Times’ story here.
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