The University of Southern California wants to erase the legacy of former running back Reggie Bush.
The school will remove jerseys, photographs and all awards that Bush won during his career. They have also decided to remove Bush’s Heisman Trophy that sat next to other USC greats such as O.J. Simpson, Matt Leinart, Carson Palmer, Marcus Allen, Charles White, and recently fired athletic director Mike Garrett.
USC was recently placed on four years of probation, they were hit with a two-year bowl ban and are restricted on how many scholarships they are allowed to hand out.
The sanctions were issued by the NCAA because of the monetary benefits that Bush received while in college.
But USC, like other major colleges and universities, benefited mightily from their star athlete. Bush’s talents propelled the USC Trojans to the No. 1 spot for most of the 2004–05 season. As a result, the team was featured on national television nearly every weekend that season. With the exposure, USC was able to make millions from sold-out crowds, television contracts, the Bowl Championship Series and merchandise sales.
Bush received a full athletic scholarship from USC worth about $53,000. That’s an insulting figure considering that USC earned more than 10 times that amount because of his achievements.
The entire NCAA is a flawed system that exploits the talents of athletes and will punish them if they decide to draw a personal benefit, no matter how miniscule. USC has embarrassed Bush by making sure that he will no longer be associated with the school. But the university should give back every dime that it earned from Bush’s name. –amir shaw
