It was leaked earlier today that the final report on the NCAA’s investigation into the USC football and basketball programs would be released on Thursday.
Ahead of that semi-scheduled release -- which will not include a press conference on the part of the Trojans as previously thought -- comes word of potential sanctions facing the football program.
And unlike some -- including us -- had previously thought, it will not exactly be a slap on the wrist for the storied institution.
According to Bruce Feldman of ESPN.com, USC will receive a two-year post-season ban from the NCAA’s probe into, among other things, the alleged illegal benefits received by Reggie Bush while he was a Heisman-winning running back at USC.
Additionally, per Feldman, the program will be hit with a loss of scholarships, the amount of which is not yet known.
There’s no word on additional sanctions that could be slapped on the university; however, if Bush were to be declared retroactively ineligible, it could lead to USC being stripped of their 2004 BcS title, a previously-unknown stipulation implemented by the governing body of Div. 1-A football titles after the NCAA’s probe into Bush commenced.
Needless to say, the fallout will continue throughout the day Thursday and, possibly, well into the future.
UPDATE 12:31 a.m. ET: According to a report in the Los Angeles Times, the USC football program will lose “more than 20... scholarships” as part of the sanctions handed down by the NCAA. There is no word on over how many years that scholarship loss would be spread out.
“Limited recruiting contacts, probation and forfeiture of victories are also among the penalties” that are in play for the football program, the Times reports.