Josh Shaw lied to USC about drowning story, is suspended indefinitely

Josh Shaw on Wednesday admitted to USC officials that he lied about the story of how he injured his ankles. He has been suspended by the program indefinitely.

Shaw suffered two high-ankle sprains on Saturday and told USC the injuries occurred when he jumped off a second-story balcony to save a 7-year-old nephew from drowning in a swimming pool. USC publicized that account with a story published on their website Monday, complete with quotes from Shaw and head coach Steve Sarkisian.

A day after the heroic story went viral, USC began investigating the story more thoroughly. There were rumors that Shaw was not out in his hometown of Palmdale that night, but rather that he was involved in an incident with his girlfriend and may have injured himself escaping from her apartment.

[Previously: Police responded to scream at apartment of Josh Shaw’s girlfriend]

“We are extremely disappointed in Josh,” said USC head football coach Steve Sarkisian. “He let us all down. As I have said, nothing in his background led us to doubt him when he told us of his injuries, nor did anything after our initial vetting of his story.

“I appreciate that Josh has now admitted that he lied and has apologized. Although this type of behavior is out of character for Josh, it is unacceptable. Honesty and integrity must be at the center of our program. I believe Josh will learn from this. I hope that he will not be defined by this incident, and that the Trojan Family will accept his apology and support him.”

USC also says Shaw now has Donald Etra as legal counsel. It’s unclear what he needs a legal adviser for, but it could be related to the alleged incident with his girlfriend.

Etra released the following statement on Shaw’s behalf.

“On Saturday August 23, 2014, I injured myself in a fall. I made up a story about this fall that was untrue. I was wrong to not 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.”