There was some smoke coming out of the original story of Southern California cornerback Josh Shaw and now it has escalated to a fire.

The young football player admitted to having fabricated the heroic story of jumping from a balcony to save a near-drowning nephew. He earlier claimed that the said turn of events was the cause of his ankle sprain and now he retracted to the whole statement, causing the school to immediately put him under suspension indefinitely.

Accroding to Yahoo Sports, Shaw formally stated his retraction through his counsel, defense attorney Donald Etra last Wednesday.

''On Saturday, August 23, 2014, I injured myself in a fall", Shaw said. ''I made up a story about this fall that was untrue. I was wrong not to tell the truth. I apologize to USC for this action on my part. My USC coaches, the USC athletic department and especially Coach Sarkisian that was supportive of me during my college career and for that, I am very grateful".

Several anonymous callers and internet users have already questioned the story after it surfaced at the team's website, citing holes in the Shaw tale. In the retelling of the incident, Shaw described how he impulsively jumped off their balcony at Palmdale, California to rescue a nephew who was drowning in the swimming pool. Calls began pouring in with one anonymous person claiming that the whole thing was fabricated.

The school and the team were extremely let down by the admission of Shaw as they looked up to the young prodigy as a captain and leader of the team. USC Coach Steve Sarkisian told reporters that there was nothing in the background of his ward that would indicate that he was lying about the injuries or he would make-up a story to cover up something.

This now begs the question of where did he really get the ankle injury. The Los Angeles Police Department earlier reported that a man by the name of Joshua Shaw was mentioned in a breaking and entering compliant at an apartment on a Saturday night but that report was not made available to the public. The police officers have already questioned several potential witnesses at the building and a woman recounted that someone opened a window of a third-floor apartment and fled without taking anything. LAPD Lt. Andy Nieman said that the woman admitted to having a relationship with Shaw.

The fifth-year senior and captain will now face the scrutiny of media and the existing suspension from the team. He will also wait if the school will pursue more sanctions in light of his confession. Shaw did not attend team practice last Wednesday.