Based on the changes in compensation in college athletics, the Heisman trust decided to return the trophy to Bush.
To be honest, I thought that taking it away was a stretch. Neither him nor his family received benefits for going to USC. It was a guy who wanted to be his agent that supplied benefits to his family after he had already been there. The NCAA also never had any proof that USC knew about it. Fine line I suppose but it came across more like a hit piece and improper investigation by the NCAA than anything else.
Now I'm going to contradict myself - if he had been punished under the rules of the day, I don't see how that rule changing +13 years later nullifies the 'breaking' of the rule at the time. Whatevs.
https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/40014492/reggie-bush-heisman-trophy-returned
To be honest, I thought that taking it away was a stretch. Neither him nor his family received benefits for going to USC. It was a guy who wanted to be his agent that supplied benefits to his family after he had already been there. The NCAA also never had any proof that USC knew about it. Fine line I suppose but it came across more like a hit piece and improper investigation by the NCAA than anything else.
Now I'm going to contradict myself - if he had been punished under the rules of the day, I don't see how that rule changing +13 years later nullifies the 'breaking' of the rule at the time. Whatevs.
https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/40014492/reggie-bush-heisman-trophy-returned