LOS ANGELES — Southern California cornerback Josh Shaw admitted to lying to school officials about how he sprained his ankles last weekend, retracting his story about jumping off a balcony to save his drowning nephew.
Shaw was suspended indefinitely from all team activities after acknowledging his heroic tale was "a complete fabrication," the school said Wednesday in a statement.
The school didn't explain how Shaw was injured, but USC officials say they regret posting a story on their website Monday lauding Shaw's story about a second-story jump onto concrete to rescue his 7-year-old nephew.
The Los Angeles Police Department said Shaw's name had been included in a report from an incident that occurred at a downtown Los Angeles apartment complex Saturday night.
Police said they were called to the Orsini Apartments, responding to reports of a woman heard screaming. When no one answered the door at the third-floor unit, officers forced entry but found no one inside.
One neighbor reported seeing a man run across or scale a balcony and gave a general description of the individual. Another resident, given that description, told officers that it sounded like her boyfriend, Josh Shaw.
Officers interviewed several people at the building, and a woman told them someone had pried open a window, entered the third-floor apartment and fled, but nothing was taken. The woman acknowledged "a relationship" with Shaw,
"We are extremely disappointed in Josh," coach Steve Sarkisian said. "He let us all down. Nothing in his background led us to doubt him when he told us of his injuries."
Shaw, who transferred from Florida in spring 2012, is a fifth-year senior, a team captain and a key starter, widely regarded as a solid teammate and leader.
Shaw issued a statement through criminal defense attorney Donald Etra, whose clients have included Rihanna and Snoop Dogg: "On Saturday, Aug. 23, 2014, I injured myself in a fall. I made up a story about this fall that was untrue. I was wrong not to tell the truth. I apologize to USC for this action on my part. My USC coaches, the USC athletic department and especially Coach Sarkisian have all been supportive of me during my college career and for that, I am very grateful."
Etra said Shaw was injured falling off the apartment balcony but said he knew of no criminal activity. Asked why Shaw would need a criminal defense lawyer, Etra said, "Intelligent people hire lawyers."
Spurrier near milestone: South Carolina's Steve Spurrier is seeking his 200th win as an SEC coach (122 came in 12 seasons at Florida) tonight against visiting Texas A&M. Game time is 6 (SEC Network). Spurrier, 69, is usually more animated when he is excited about a good team, and he seemed quite animated during the offseason. Spurrier jabbed Clemson's Dabo Swinney and Alabama's Nick Saban, and told his players about the new SEC Network: "You know what that means, don't you, fellas? More money, but not for you.''
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