A great step forward

From USC athletics:

USC will offer four-year athletic scholarships to all scholarship student-athletes in the revenue sports of football and men's and women's basketball in lieu of the current practice of offering one-year renewable scholarships, USC Athletic Director Pat Haden announced today. 

Haden said this policy will be effective July 1, 2014, for all current and future scholarship student-athletes in those sports. 
    
"In taking this action, USC hopes to help lead the effort to refocus on student-athlete welfare on and off the field," Haden said.

Haden also reaffirmed the university's commitment to assist those scholarship student-athletes in good academic standing that have exhausted their intercollegiate eligibility to obtain their undergraduate degrees. USC has assisted more than 250 former student-athletes with undergraduate degree academic support over the last decade.

Of course, with the USC alumni base, this is easily affordable but that doesn't take anything away from this welcome change.