NCAA May End Probe of Keyshawn Johnson : USC: Conflicting stories could mean investigation is almost over.

Unless new facts are uncovered in the next few weeks, NCAA investigators are not likely to pursue efforts to learn whether USC wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson took money from a sports agent, officials said Thursday.

Johnson, a 6-foot-4, 205-pound senior, came under scrutiny in August when NCAA and Pacific 10 Conference officials questioned him about allegedly accepting $1,200 from an agent while he was playing in junior college in 1993. That allegation does not involve agent Robert Troy Caron of Oxnard, who allegedly has given money and other gifts to at least 12 players from seven schools, among them USC and UCLA.

USC officials have stood behind Johnson, who said he was given $200 by an agent he has known for 16 years. That agent, Tim Shannon of Laguna Hills, is a former USC defensive back who befriended Johnson in 1979.

Although new information surfaced this fall, investigators have been unable to determine whether it helps make a case against Johnson.

“It comes down to a situation where there aren’t any facts that cause us to believe there has been a violation,” said Robert Lane, USC general counsel.

The NCAA questioned Johnson after receiving copies of taped telephone conversations between a San Diego agent and a former agent recruiter. The agent, Elliott Vallin, said during the taped conversations that he had paid Johnson $1,200 and wanted his money back.

The basic story has Vallin, a former business partner of Shannon’s, giving Johnson $200 on Shannon’s behalf.

But investigators have been told different versions by everyone involved. They are unable to decide which story is correct.

Bob Minnix, an NCAA director of enforcement, said this week such situations make getting corroborating evidence difficult.

Speaking in general terms, he said: “There are serious credibility problems in those types of cases. The case has to be built around someone other than the person giving four stories.”

Meanwhile, Johnson is having a stellar season. In five games, he has caught 43 passes for 640 yards and four touchdowns.