Big Ten fines USC $5,000 for playing running back Bryan Jackson against Michigan

Redshirt freshman walk-on King Miller was not the only USC running back to come off the bench and shine in the Trojans’ massive victory over Michigan on Saturday . In addition, sophomore Bryan Jackson scored a 29-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter that put the game out of reach and sent the visiting Wolverines fans to the Coliseum exits.

There was just one problem: Jackson was listed as out on USC’s pregame availability report. On Monday, the Big Ten fined the Trojans $5,000 for playing Jackson despite the designation.

“It’s a unique situation,” coach Lincoln Riley said after the game about Jackson coming in. “It was a wellness issue in the game. He’s been practicing in a very limited capacity and building up for the last several weeks. He’s had a turf toe. There was an expectation coming into this game that outside of a near catastrophe, we weren’t going to play him.

“And so the game plays out. We have a couple injuries that you never expect to happen. Two of them, just like that. We were able to get in communication with the league office and explain the situation. Our doctors medically cleared him, and again, it just became a wellness issue for us here. We made sure to clear him.

“The kid was ready to go and stepped up. That’s what you gotta have, man. You gotta have tough guys.”

While Riley’s explanation makes sense, it did not stop the conference from fining the Trojans . Given the small nature of a $5,00 fine compared to how huge beating Michigan was, though, it seems fairly likely that if Riley were given the opportunity to do it over, he would make the same decision.

This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Big Ten fines USC football for playing Bryan Jackson against Michigan