Reggie Bush Heisman Trophy Given Back

[GP1]

Most of you already know I find most of the people involved in running college athletics lazy and sort of less than reputable. At the top, you have the NCAA followed closely by Athletic Directors. Let's see what USC did to regain the moral high ground for getting caught doing what everyone else is doing at the high BCS level. Let's see.....they give back Bush's Heisman trophy. Oh, how daring and brave....if you believe they are actually daring and brave, I have some property that has appreciated in value the past two years.

If they want to take the high road, they should do the following.

1. Give back all money made from Reggie Bush merchandising.

2. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman.

3. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman with the other Heismans men have won at USC.

4. Give Reggie Bush back all money he may have donated to USC since leaving school.

The point is this. Giving back the Heisman is an empty action lacking in any REAL meaning. It doesn't cost them a penny to give back the trophy. Kind of shows how lazy people in college athletics can be. Sure, it probably makes some bitter people happy on some level, but they will be bitter again soon enough. These same people are probably happy they took away their wins for that season. I'm sure taking away those wins sure makes those guys who got their asses kicked by USC that year feel better.

If they wanted to make a real statement, give back the money they made with him. Sounds simple to me. Absent of that, spare us the empty actions.

USC went undefeated in 2004 regardless of what they say now. Reggie Bush won the Heisman in 2004. USC was National Champion in 2004. There is video to prove all of this.

BTW, there is a great HBO Real Sports story on this. Had Reggie Bush just paid the guy who was buying the houses, etc. the $750K he owed him, none of this would have come out. It goes on every day at big schools, USC just got caught.

[Z.I.P.]

No, but their quick action makes it look like they did it voluntarily, er, uh, pre-emptively. Sure makes Haden look good. ABC is going to miss him.

[zipzippy]

I couldnt agree more about how this goes on everywhere USC was just the ones who got caught. I think that if they are going to come down on one school like this they need to go to all the major universities across the U.S. The NCAA needs to start cracking down on all of them not just one every once in awhile. I remember the whole Maurice Clarett ordeal at osu i thought they got off pretty easy because they only investigated one player instead of the entire program same with Oklahoma a few years back with the rhett bohmar deal. It goes on at all the major colleges across the U.S. and taking away trophies they have already been presented and games that have already won is not going to stop people from continuing to pay these athletes and its not going to stop athletes from taking it because it really doesnt affect them in any way once they move on to the NFL.

[ZachTheZip]

The NCAA knew that USC would never give back anything of actual value. That's why they took away 30 scholarships, TV, the post-season, and put them on probation. If they can't give back money from the apst, they'll take it away from the future.

[Zipmeister]

Most of you already know I find most of the people involved in running college athletics lazy and sort of less than reputable. At the top, you have the NCAA followed closely by Athletic Directors. Let's see what USC did to regain the moral high ground for getting caught doing what everyone else is doing at the high BCS level. Let's see.....they give back Bush's Heisman trophy. Oh, how daring and brave....if you believe they are actually daring and brave, I have some property that has appreciated in value the past two years.

If they want to take the high road, they should do the following.

1. Give back all money made from Reggie Bush merchandising.

2. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman.

3. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman with the other Heismans men have won at USC.

4. Give Reggie Bush back all money he may have donated to USC since leaving school.

The point is this. Giving back the Heisman is an empty action lacking in any REAL meaning. It doesn't cost them a penny to give back the trophy. Kind of shows how lazy people in college athletics can be. Sure, it probably makes some bitter people happy on some level, but they will be bitter again soon enough. These same people are probably happy they took away their wins for that season. I'm sure taking away those wins sure makes those guys who got their asses kicked by USC that year feel better.

If they wanted to make a real statement, give back the money they made with him. Sounds simple to me. Absent of that, spare us the empty actions.

USC went undefeated in 2004 regardless of what they say now. Reggie Bush won the Heisman in 2004. USC was National Champion in 2004. There is video to prove all of this.

BTW, there is a great HBO Real Sports story on this. Had Reggie Bush just paid the guy who was buying the houses, etc. the $750K he owed him, none of this would have come out. It goes on every day at big schools, USC just got caught.

Well if they decide to follow your suggestion I hope they kept all the receipts because I tossed mine out.

[GP1]

The NCAA needs to start cracking down on all of them not just one every once in awhile.

Why not institute two reforms that would eliminate this type of situation instead of making the regulatory arm of college athletics even bigger? Keep the costs of college sports down.

Reform 1: Pay the freaking players. It is already professional in everything except players getting paid. $1,000 per month isn't going to break the bank.

Reform 2: Allow players to sign signing non refundable bonuses with agents while still in college without losing the ability to play in college? A player only gets to sign one of these contracts. Put the risk on the agents.

[ZachTheZip]

Reform 1: Pay the freaking players. It is already professional in everything except players getting paid. $1,000 per month isn't going to break the bank.

Paying the players is soemthing that gets thrown out there all the time as a solution to some perceived problem. But what problem does it address? Players being too greedy? If they're greedy, they'll still take money illegaly, get their rent payed for by boosters, and all that stuff. Paying them won't change that. They'll take all the illicit stuff and pocket the school's paycheck.

Another argument I hear is that the schools make all sorts of money from athletics, so they should pay the players who bring in that money. There are 1080 schools in the NCAA. 18 of them actually make any money from athletics. At any given time, the top 25 in football has at least 10 schools in it that are losing money. And you think they can pay?

$1k a month... every month of the year? Only during the season? If so, what about spring practice? What happens with Title IX? Do you have to pay 82 women athletes the same amount, too? Or extend it to all sports, so the men's rowing team and the women's golf team and all the other sports that don't bring in a dime of revenue get $1k per athlete per month as well, costing the school many millions? Somebody will sue for inequality if you don't.

[GP1]

Reform 1: Pay the freaking players. It is already professional in everything except players getting paid. $1,000 per month isn't going to break the bank.

Paying the players is soemthing that gets thrown out there all the time as a solution to some perceived problem. But what problem does it address? Players being too greedy? If they're greedy, they'll still take money illegaly, get their rent payed for by boosters, and all that stuff. Paying them won't change that. They'll take all the illicit stuff and pocket the school's paycheck.

Another argument I hear is that the schools make all sorts of money from athletics, so they should pay the players who bring in that money. There are 1080 schools in the NCAA. 18 of them actually make any money from athletics. At any given time, the top 25 in football has at least 10 schools in it that are losing money. And you think they can pay?

$1k a month... every month of the year? Only during the season? If so, what about spring practice? What happens with Title IX? Do you have to pay 82 women athletes the same amount, too? Or extend it to all sports, so the men's rowing team and the women's golf team and all the other sports that don't bring in a dime of revenue get $1k per athlete per month as well, costing the school many millions? Somebody will sue for inequality if you don't.

The $1,000 per month could be for those who don't sign agent contracts. If a player isn't worth a crap, $1,000 is what you get. If you are any good, an agent would be willing to pay you for future earnings. Let the free market decide who is good and who isn't.

If schools can't afford their athletic programs, they need to look into cutting some of them. The gravey train is over. It's 2010 and our society has learned there is no free ride over the past 3 years. People will understand now more than every if cuts need to be made.

If we instituted the Great GP1's Super Duper Division in college football, we could only pay those players. Those 40 schools would make plenty of money to spread it around to the players. 85 Scholarships x $12,000/year/player = $1,020,000. Around a 7% increase in funding for UofA (who wouldn't make the top 40 schools) and a drop in the bucket for BCS schools. Schools flush more than that down the drain each year in salaries for coaches and bloated athletic departments.

Outlawing paying college players is like outlawing marijuana. Nobody is really hurt by paying players. Nobody is really hurt by people smoking pot in private as long as they don't drive while under the influence. In reality, we are taking up large amounts of space in our jails for pot smokers and dealers costing states millions. In reality, universities have to spend millions trying to police kids between the ages of 18-24 who are already taking money and nobody is really being hurt by them taking money.

Who was really hurt by Reggie Bush taking money? Nobody. Reggie Bush won the freaking Heisman Trophy and he was taking money. He wasn't hurt by taking money and he didn't give less than 100% while taking money. The fans enjoyed his play so fans benefited while he was taking money. He's making millions in the NFL. USC benefited from his athletic ability so they weren't hurt by him taking money. The guys who came up short in the Heisman weren't hurt, they werent' as good as him so they didn't deserve the trophy. Does anyone really think the finalists for the Heisman Trophy from that year weren't getting some under the table money? The teams they beat had players on their team taking money and they just weren't caught so I don't see how they were hurt. They weren't as good as USC.

The only people who believe they are hurt by Bush taking money are bitter jackasses who live in a fantasy world of how they think college football should be, yet never has been. In reality, these people aren't hurt because they love being bitter jackasses and Bush taking money actually makes them happy because they have something to be bitter about.

Pay the freaking players for crying out loud.

[zipzippy]

The players already get 1000 a month for rent food bills etc... But since your on the paying the players subject why not establish some kind of legitimate pay plan for each player. There is a minor league for basketball and baseball but college football is the minor leagues for football. The NCAA should put a cap on how much the players recieve and each team only one player can be paid the maximum and the rest trickle down through the rest of the players that way each school has the oppurtunity to buy out the best high school players. College football is making a killing off the athletes and for the most part they dont see a dime of it.

[Zipmeister]

Reform 1: Pay the freaking players. It is already professional in everything except players getting paid. $1,000 per month isn't going to break the bank.

Paying the players is soemthing that gets thrown out there all the time as a solution to some perceived problem. But what problem does it address? Players being too greedy? If they're greedy, they'll still take money illegaly, get their rent payed for by boosters, and all that stuff. Paying them won't change that. They'll take all the illicit stuff and pocket the school's paycheck.

Another argument I hear is that the schools make all sorts of money from athletics, so they should pay the players who bring in that money. There are 1080 schools in the NCAA. 18 of them actually make any money from athletics. At any given time, the top 25 in football has at least 10 schools in it that are losing money. And you think they can pay?

$1k a month... every month of the year? Only during the season? If so, what about spring practice? What happens with Title IX? Do you have to pay 82 women athletes the same amount, too? Or extend it to all sports, so the men's rowing team and the women's golf team and all the other sports that don't bring in a dime of revenue get $1k per athlete per month as well, costing the school many millions? Somebody will sue for inequality if you don't.

The $1,000 per month could be for those who don't sign agent contracts. If a player isn't worth a crap, $1,000 is what you get. If you are any good, an agent would be willing to pay you for future earnings. Let the free market decide who is good and who isn't.

If schools can't afford their athletic programs, they need to look into cutting some of them. The gravey train is over. It's 2010 and our society has learned there is no free ride over the past 3 years. People will understand now more than every if cuts need to be made.

If we instituted the Great GP1's Super Duper Division in college football, we could only pay those players. Those 40 schools would make plenty of money to spread it around to the players. 85 Scholarships x $12,000/year/player = $1,020,000. Around a 7% increase in funding for UofA (who wouldn't make the top 40 schools) and a drop in the bucket for BCS schools. Schools flush more than that down the drain each year in salaries for coaches and bloated athletic departments.

Outlawing paying college players is like outlawing marijuana. Nobody is really hurt by paying players. Nobody is really hurt by people smoking pot in private as long as they don't drive while under the influence. In reality, we are taking up large amounts of space in our jails for pot smokers and dealers costing states millions. In reality, universities have to spend millions trying to police kids between the ages of 18-24 who are already taking money and nobody is really being hurt by them taking money.

Who was really hurt by Reggie Bush taking money? Nobody. Reggie Bush won the freaking Heisman Trophy and he was taking money. He wasn't hurt by taking money and he didn't give less than 100% while taking money. The fans enjoyed his play so fans benefited while he was taking money. He's making millions in the NFL. USC benefited from his athletic ability so they weren't hurt by him taking money. The guys who came up short in the Heisman weren't hurt, they werent' as good as him so they didn't deserve the trophy. Does anyone really think the finalists for the Heisman Trophy from that year weren't getting some under the table money? The teams they beat had players on their team taking money and they just weren't caught so I don't see how they were hurt. They weren't as good as USC.

The only people who believe they are hurt by Bush taking money are bitter jackasses who live in a fantasy world of how they think college football should be, yet never has been. In reality, these people aren't hurt because they love being bitter jackasses and Bush taking money actually makes them happy because they have something to be bitter about.

Pay the freaking players for crying out loud.

USC could pay every school's players for at least a decade if we follow your original suggestion, but designate any funds that they can't "give back" (because guys like me lost their receipts) for that purpose.

[GoZips]

Most of you already know I find most of the people involved in running college athletics lazy and sort of less than reputable. At the top, you have the NCAA followed closely by Athletic Directors. Let's see what USC did to regain the moral high ground for getting caught doing what everyone else is doing at the high BCS level. Let's see.....they give back Bush's Heisman trophy. Oh, how daring and brave....if you believe they are actually daring and brave, I have some property that has appreciated in value the past two years.

If they want to take the high road, they should do the following.

1. Give back all money made from Reggie Bush merchandising.

2. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman.

3. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman with the other Heismans men have won at USC.

4. Give Reggie Bush back all money he may have donated to USC since leaving school.

The point is this. Giving back the Heisman is an empty action lacking in any REAL meaning. It doesn't cost them a penny to give back the trophy. Kind of shows how lazy people in college athletics can be. Sure, it probably makes some bitter people happy on some level, but they will be bitter again soon enough. These same people are probably happy they took away their wins for that season. I'm sure taking away those wins sure makes those guys who got their asses kicked by USC that year feel better.

If they wanted to make a real statement, give back the money they made with him. Sounds simple to me. Absent of that, spare us the empty actions.

USC went undefeated in 2004 regardless of what they say now. Reggie Bush won the Heisman in 2004. USC was National Champion in 2004. There is video to prove all of this.

BTW, there is a great HBO Real Sports story on this. Had Reggie Bush just paid the guy who was buying the houses, etc. the $750K he owed him, none of this would have come out. It goes on every day at big schools, USC just got caught.

Well said.

Southern Cal is still layered in slime. The untainted players for USC have not yet been born.

[GP1]

Most of you already know I find most of the people involved in running college athletics lazy and sort of less than reputable. At the top, you have the NCAA followed closely by Athletic Directors. Let's see what USC did to regain the moral high ground for getting caught doing what everyone else is doing at the high BCS level. Let's see.....they give back Bush's Heisman trophy. Oh, how daring and brave....if you believe they are actually daring and brave, I have some property that has appreciated in value the past two years.

If they want to take the high road, they should do the following.

1. Give back all money made from Reggie Bush merchandising.

2. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman.

3. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman with the other Heismans men have won at USC.

4. Give Reggie Bush back all money he may have donated to USC since leaving school.

The point is this. Giving back the Heisman is an empty action lacking in any REAL meaning. It doesn't cost them a penny to give back the trophy. Kind of shows how lazy people in college athletics can be. Sure, it probably makes some bitter people happy on some level, but they will be bitter again soon enough. These same people are probably happy they took away their wins for that season. I'm sure taking away those wins sure makes those guys who got their asses kicked by USC that year feel better.

If they wanted to make a real statement, give back the money they made with him. Sounds simple to me. Absent of that, spare us the empty actions.

USC went undefeated in 2004 regardless of what they say now. Reggie Bush won the Heisman in 2004. USC was National Champion in 2004. There is video to prove all of this.

BTW, there is a great HBO Real Sports story on this. Had Reggie Bush just paid the guy who was buying the houses, etc. the $750K he owed him, none of this would have come out. It goes on every day at big schools, USC just got caught.

Well said.

Southern Cal is still layered in slime. The untainted players for USC have not yet been born.

Do you mean USC or the NCAA? I think it is the NCAA that is layered in slime.

[Captain Kangaroo]

Most of you already know I find most of the people involved in running college athletics lazy and sort of less than reputable. At the top, you have the NCAA followed closely by Athletic Directors. Let's see what USC did to regain the moral high ground for getting caught doing what everyone else is doing at the high BCS level. Let's see.....they give back Bush's Heisman trophy. Oh, how daring and brave....if you believe they are actually daring and brave, I have some property that has appreciated in value the past two years.

If they want to take the high road, they should do the following.

1. Give back all money made from Reggie Bush merchandising.

2. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman.

3. Give back all money made from marketing Bush's Heisman with the other Heismans men have won at USC.

4. Give Reggie Bush back all money he may have donated to USC since leaving school.

The point is this. Giving back the Heisman is an empty action lacking in any REAL meaning. It doesn't cost them a penny to give back the trophy. Kind of shows how lazy people in college athletics can be. Sure, it probably makes some bitter people happy on some level, but they will be bitter again soon enough. These same people are probably happy they took away their wins for that season. I'm sure taking away those wins sure makes those guys who got their asses kicked by USC that year feel better.

If they wanted to make a real statement, give back the money they made with him. Sounds simple to me. Absent of that, spare us the empty actions.

USC went undefeated in 2004 regardless of what they say now. Reggie Bush won the Heisman in 2004. USC was National Champion in 2004. There is video to prove all of this.

BTW, there is a great HBO Real Sports story on this. Had Reggie Bush just paid the guy who was buying the houses, etc. the $750K he owed him, none of this would have come out. It goes on every day at big schools, USC just got caught.

Well said.

Southern Cal is still layered in slime. The untainted players for USC have not yet been born.

Do you mean USC or the NCAA? I think it is the NCAA that is layered in slime.

The NCAA is akin to making sausage. The average Joe couldn't handle watching sausage production...but the end-product is absolutely delicious and everyone enjoys it.

I absolutely love everything about a college game day. And Reggie Bush or Miles Brand can't ruin it for me.