Minor NCAA Rule Violation Makes for Short Day at Practice

USC was required to practice in shorts Thursday after inadvertently violating a minor NCAA rule stipulating that teams cannot count Sunday practices as part of a mandated three-day conditioning period to open camp.

The Trojans conducted conditioning drills in shorts Saturday, Sunday and Monday before donning full pads for contact drills Tuesday. Neither Coach Pete Carroll nor the school’s NCAA compliance officers were aware of the rule before the violation occurred.

“Everybody missed it,” said Tim Tessalone, USC’s sports information director.

The Trojans will practice in shorts again today, ending their a two-day penalty agreed upon by the school and the Pacific 10 Conference.

Carroll said he would have to alter practice “about a dozen plays a day” during periods when the team normally would have completed contact drills. Nonetheless, Carroll said, “I think we can make a positive out of this, and we’ll get through these next few days with a lot of learning done and a lot of work.”