USC signs offensive lineman who punched junior college referee in 2016

Bernard Schirmer was arrested for the incident, but never charged and maintains it was an accident

USC announced on Tuesday that it had received a signed financial aid agreement from offensive lineman Bernard Schirmer. If that name sounds oddly familiar at all, there's a reason.

Schirmer, you may recall, was arrested two years ago for punching a referee during a junior college game while he was at Mount San Antonio College. The hit knocked the referee out cold, though Schirmer has maintained that the hit was accidental. 

"First of all, I'd like to apologize to the ref. It was unintentional," Schirmer said following the incident. "I had no thought in my head of harming the ref." Schirmer added that he used to calm himself down by hitting himself on the helmet, resulting in an unintentional swipe at the official. 

Still, Schirmer received a five-year suspension from the Southern California Football Association. However, he was never charged in the incident because of a lack of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. 

In a statement, USC coach Clay Helton said that the program evaluated Schirmer and concluded that the lineman would be "a great member of our Trojan family."