Reggie Bush’s Heisman Trophy will soon return to him.
The Heisman Trust will grant Bush the 2005 Heisman Trophy back as part of a “reinstatement” due to “enormous changes in the college football landscape,” ESPN reported Wednesday. An announcement of the Heisman Trust’s decision is reportedly expected to be made later in the day.
“Personally, I’m thrilled to reunite with my fellow Heisman winners and be a part of the storied legacy of the Heisman Trophy, and I’m honored to return to the Heisman family,” Bush told ESPN “I also look forward to working together with the Heisman Trust to advance the values and mission of the organization.”
Bush forfeited the Heisman in 2010 after an NCAA investigation found that he received improper benefits during his time at USC from 2003-05. The Heisman Trust didn’t award a new winner in Bush’s place.
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Calls for the Heisman Trust to return the award to Bush have risen in the last few years following the legalization of college athletes to earn money off their name, image and likeness (NIL) in 2021. Bush also asked for the Heisman Trophy to be returned to him in 2021.
“It is my strong belief that I won the Heisman trophy ‘solely’ due to my hard work and dedication on the football field and it is also my firm belief that my records should be reinstated,” Bush said in a statement on the first day college athletes were able to profit off NIL.
Other former Heisman winners joined Bush, such as his USC teammate Matt Leinart and Johnny Manziel, who said earlier in 2024 that he wouldn’t attend another Heisman ceremony until the award was given back to the iconic college running back.
The Heisman Trust went through a “deliberative process” to decide whether to give Bush back his Heisman Trophy due to “fundamental changes in college athletics,” ESPN reported.
“We are thrilled to welcome Reggie Bush back to the Heisman family in recognition of his collegiate accomplishments,” Heisman Trophy Trust president Michael Comerford told ESPN. “We considered the enormous changes in college athletics over the last several years in deciding that now is the right time to reinstate the trophy for Reggie. We are so happy to welcome him back.”
“Recognizing that the compensation of student athletes is an accepted practice and appears here to stay, these fundamental changes in college athletics led the Trust to decide that now is the right time to return the Trophy to Bush, who unquestionably was the most outstanding college football player of 2005,” Comerford added in his statement to ESPN.
USC will also reportedly get the replica of Bush’s Heisman Trophy back as well. It gave the trophy up in 2010 after the NCAA dropped major sanctions on the program after the investigation found Bush received improper gifts.
With Bush’s Heisman win officially restored, USC holds the record for most Heisman wins for a single program with eight. It was previously tied for the most with seven alongside Ohio State, Oklahoma and Notre Dame.
Bush rushed for 1,740 yards on 8.7 yards per carry and 16 touchdowns to go with 37 receptions for 478 yards and two touchdowns in 2005, helping USC go undefeated in the regular season before losing to Texas in the Rose Bowl. He also helped USC win the national title in 2004.
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