During the 2005 NCAA Football season the USC Trojans were a powerhouse team, going undefeated in the regular season and only losing one game to the #2 rank Texas Longhorns in the Rose Bowl.
During that season Bush was their standout star with 2,611 all-purpose yards and 18 touchdowns. This resulted in Bush winning the Heisman trophy being the 7th USC player to receive the honor.
But a short 5 years later Bush was forced to return his Heisman after an NCAA investigation revealed multiple rules violations at USC during that time. Not only did USC lose a Heisman they also lost 30 scholarships and a two-year postseason ban.
During that time though the NCAA was very different than how it is now. At that point there was no transfer portal and players often had to sit out a year if they did transfer, they also made no money off of their name, image, or likeness (NIL). This resulted in multiple instances where players would accept gifts from friends, fans, or supporters of their school and be penalized for it.
But in the 14 years since Bush was forced to return his Heisman the NCAA has taken massive strides into the future. With players being free to transfer wherever without having to lose a year of eligibility and they can now profit off of their NIL meaning that the things Bush was penalized for is now common in every school in the NCAA.
With that the NCAA decided yesterday to reinstate Bush’s Heisman trophy and absolve him of any wrongdoing during his playing years at USC. With that it opens the door for other schools and players to have their titles and other awards reinstated like SMU, Michigan, or dozens of other players and schools who had players accept money and where forced to vacate seasons, awards, and stats.