The LA Daily News' Scott Wolf is reporting that departing USC Football player Brandon Ting tested positive for steroids in the winter. (Big Hat Tip to my fellow blogger DC Trojan)
Well, this hurts. With all the positive things that were said in regards to his character Brandon's testing positive takes a lot of luster off the pearl. His positive drug test would have made him ineligible for the upcoming season had he stayed on the team.
From the Article:
According to an NCAA official, players who test positive lose one year of eligibility and are held out of competition for one year. The penalty cannot coincide with a redshirt year.
Brandon Ting was going to be a senior. He practiced last spring and would have been eligible to practice this fall, as long as he did not play in games.
Brandon Ting could not be reached for comment. Last week, Ryan Ting released a statement when the brothers announced they would no longer play football to concentrate on the demands of their medical school ambitions.
What more can be said? I hope that Brandon is able to put this behind him and hopefully use this experience as a learning tool and educate other athletes or young people in the pitfalls of these dangerous drugs.