Late Tuesday night, The Times asked Kiffin if Baxter's punishment was related to a USC Department of Public Safety incident report filed at 2:47 a.m. Tuesday. It indicates that officers were at Fluor Tower, where USC players are housed for the first few weeks of training camp, when an incident occurred.
"A student was cited to Judicial Affairs for violating a team curfew and being under the influence of a controlled substance," the report said. Neither Baxter nor any other player is named in the report.
Kiffin said Tuesday night that he was unaware of any report and declined again to specify why Baxter was not allowed to practice. Asked if he was aware of an incident in the dorm involving Baxter, Kiffin responded, "Depending on what you call an incident." He later met in his office with Baxter.
Asked Wednesday after the Trojans' morning walkthrough if the report related to Baxter, Kiffin and other school officials declined to comment, citing privacy issues that prevent them from speaking publicly about students that have been cited to the school's Office of Judicial Affairs.
But a source with knowledge of the situation said Baxter was the unnamed individual in the report and that officers smelled marijuana in the dormitory. The source, unauthorized to speak publicly about the matter, requested anonymity.
