Paul Myerberg

USA TODAY Sports

The Pac-12 Conference fined USC athletics director Pat Haden $25,000 for coming down to the sidelines to argue with the officiating crew during Saturday's 13-10 victory against Stanford, calling Haden's behavior "inappropriate."

In a statement, Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott issued a strong reprimand of both Haden and USC coach Steve Sarkisian for conduct "in clear violation of our Conference's Standards of Conduct policy."

"The conduct by USC Athletics Director Pat Haden was inappropriate," read the statement. "Such actions by an administrator in attempt to influence the officiating, and ultimately the outcome of a contest, will not be tolerated."

Haden left the press area and sprinted across the Stanford Stadium field late in the third quarter of Saturday's game at the request of a USC staff member, he said after the game. USC linebacker Hayes Pullard had just been ejected for targeting, but Haden said his discussion with the officiating crew centered on an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty levied on Sarkisian.

"The conduct by both Sarkisian and Haden were in clear violation of our Conference's Standards of Conduct policy," Scott said. "We appreciate the public apology and recognition of the errors in judgment, as well as Pat Haden's self-imposed 2-game sideline ban. We took this into consideration as we determined the discipline. Nonetheless, the actions fell short of our expectation of our head coaches and athletics directors as role models for our student-athletes and important leaders of our institutions."

Haden was captured on national television talking with two officials, shaking his head in a "no" motion and then waving his arms as the conversation ended.

The on-field engagement with the officials drew negative attention to Haden's role as one of the 13 members of the College Football Playoff selection committee.

Playoff Executive Director Bill Hancock released the following statement: "Emotional outbursts at games are not a matter for the playoff selection committee to deal with. This does not affect Pat Haden's capability as a committee member. We recognize that athletics directors cannot be dispassionate about their own teams, and that's why we have the recusal policy."

Haden issued an apology on Sunday evening via USC's official athletics site, saying he would ban himself from being on the sideline for the Trojans' next two games.

"I apologize to Commissioner Scott, to the game officials, to Stanford and to the fans for any distraction I might have caused during Saturday's football game," Haden wrote in a release issued by the university. "In retrospect, I should not have approached the game officials. I should have waited until after the game and gone through the appropriate channels."