As No.8 USC prepares for their season opener this weekend against Arkansas State, the university is dealing with once again another hard blow to their program. After head coach Steve Sarkisian crashed the media with his unfortunate speech, a Former USC Trojan and pass-rush specialist is suing the institution. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Morgan Breslin states that USC provided him with deficient coverage for health problems inflicted while playing for the Men of Troy.
Breslin played for the Trojans starting in 2012 and became a impact player on the Trojans defensive line. In 2012, Breslin was third in the nation in sacks (13) and earned 2012 SI.com All-American honorable mention among other accolades. Over the next two years Breslin's career at USC spiraled downhill, as injuries plagued the talented defensive lineman and caused him to miss 75% of the Trojans' games. Breslin was picked up as an undrafted free agent by the San Francisco 49ers to get a second chance at playing. Breslin's insurance is nothing new to USC as former Trojan wide receiver: Marquise Lee, purchased the insurance while in school.
If a court finds that Breslin was misguided or mislead on the insurance policy and the university is found liable, Breslin can leave the table a rich man. Yahoo Sports claims that Morgan can collect between $750,000 to $1 million from the lawsuit. USC will have their hands full since now the insurance policy Breslin invested in early 2013 is now being considered invalid after he made the claim in 2014.
If the University did mislead or misinform Breslin about the nature of the insurance then it is unfair to Breslin and student-athletes throughout the NCAA that decide to prepare for the worst throughout their careers. Regardless of what happens in the court, Morgan and all NCAA competitors should be given accurate information and USC as well as every university should stay loyal to their word. Breslin seemed to be under the impression that if he runs into an injury while at USC, the insurance claim would come into affect and help him make up for the loss of value going into the draft but that was apparently not the case.
Breslin was arguably one of the top defenders in 2012 and could have been a household name if he was not kept out of competition due to costly injuries.If the University did make a mistake and is liable, it will be great to see Breslin receive a pay out for the mistake both for his benefit and because it would demonstrate that athletes' health does matter and universities do take care of their student-athletes. Best of luck to Breslin and the Trojans this Saturday.