NCAA Investigating USC Over Daniel Hackett's Walk-On Status

For USC, Daniel Hackett is an absolute bargain. Not only is he the Trojans' starting point guard, but he's also a walk-on, so he doesn't count against the team's scholarship limit. But ESPN is reporting that the NCAA has launched an investigation into whether USC is skirting the rules by hiring Hackett's father.

According to a report aired today on SportsCenter, Hackett has his tuition waived because his father, Rudy Hackett, is the school's strength and conditioning manager. That basically gives the Trojans an extra scholarship player. Rudy was hired a year before Daniel enrolled at the school, and ESPN reported that the NCAA is looking into whether they came as a "package deal."

It's not clear whether USC is actually violating any NCAA rules in its dealings with the Hacketts, but there have long been questions raised when the parent of a star recruit gets a job at the school where the player lands. Neither USC nor Hackett would talk to ESPN; more details are expected to be aired on Sunday's Outside the Lines.