USC Linebacker Osa Masina Under Investigation For Sexual Assault

Osa Masina will not be traveling with USC as the Trojans head to Dallas to face No. 1 Alabama this weekend. The sophomore linebacker has been suspended as he is being investigated for sexual assault in two cities.

While details are scant, Masina is reportedly under investigation for a sexual assault near his hometown of Cottonwood Heights, Utah, and another in Los Angeles as well.

A search warrant was issued to Masina over the weekend as part of the investigation, and Cottonwood Heights police met with him on campus last week for about an hour.

Head coach Clay Helton announced that Masina would be suspended and USC issued a statement in response to the situation:

"USC is aware of the investigation involving student-athlete Osa Masina. USC is cooperating fully with authorities in Utah, the lead agency in the investigation. Due to privacy laws and to protect the rights of our students, we are not able to discuss this matter further."

Masina was one of the top linebackers in the 2015 recruiting class and chose USC over UCLA, BYU, Note Dame, Arizona State and a litany of other top schools. As a freshman he played in 12 games, collecting 25 tackles, with 1.5 tackles for loss and a touchdown on a fumble recover.

Masina was listed as a backup at inside linebacker but was expected to be heavily in the rotation this weekend against Alabama. Now he’s got much bigger things to worry about.