Reggie Bush Got His Heisman Trophy Back 14 Years After Returning It — Why Did He Lose It?
Reggie Bush was punished and returned his Heisman for something that's now completely fine and acceptable.
Updated May 2 2024, 11:23 a.m. ET
It seems kinda weird that one of the greatest college football players of all time, someone that’s in the College Football Hall of Fame, was stripped of his Heisman Trophy for off-field benefits. Non-criminal off-field benefits. Benefits the NCAA is now OK with.
Reggie Bush won the 2005 Heisman Trophy. He gave it back to the NCAA in 2010. Since 2021, he has been vocal about wanting it back and even filed a defamation lawsuit over the matter. While it seems Reggie's efforts paid off as the trophy was returned to him in April 2024, people are still seeking the intricate details of why he had to let it go in the first place. Here's what we know.
Why did Reggie Bush lose his Heisman Trophy?
Reggie voluntarily returned his Heisman back after an NCAA investigation found he received benefits of thousands of dollars and a vehicle that were not allowed at the time. Due to new NCAA rules, all of that is now allowed.
In 2021, the NCAA clarified that, even with their new rules, Reggie wouldn't be getting his Heisman back. According to ESPN, the NCAA said that "Bush's 2005 season records remain vacated by the NCAA and, as a result, under the rule set forth by the Heisman Trust and stated on the Heisman Ballot, he is not eligible to be awarded the 2005 Heisman Memorial Trophy."
What Reggie said when he gave the statue back in 2010 reverberates in 2024.
"One of the greatest honors of my life was winning the Heisman Trophy in 2005,” Reggie said in 2010. “For me, it was a dream come true. And I know that any young man fortunate enough to win the Heisman enters into a family of sorts. Each individual carries the legacy of the award and each one is entrusted with its good name. It is for these reasons that I have made the difficult decision to forfeit my title as Heisman winner of 2005."
Reggie never wanted to give the trophy back.
In an episode of the NFL Players: Second Act podcast released on Jan. 26, 2023, the running back talked at length about the award. “I didn't want to give it back. So let me just go ahead and say that this was not something that I wanted to do. It was just something in that time period I felt was the right thing to do.”
Later on in the episode, Reggie talked about how sooner or later, he expects the trophy to come back to him. “But do I believe it's gonna come back? I've always felt that way in my heart of hearts. I've always felt like that, you know, [...] I always felt like once the facts come out, you know, the trophy is gonna come back.”
Reggie filed a lawsuit against the NCAA for defamation in August 2023. In October 2023, the NCAA filed a motion to dismiss the case. A few months later, Reggie was honored by the College Football Hall of Fame.
Reggie Bush was inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame in 2023.
In December 2023, Reggie was inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame. His Hall of Fame biography begins, "One of the most dynamic players in the history of college football, Reggie Bush helped Southern California claim two national championships and a 37-2 record during his three years playing in Los Angeles." It does not mention him winning (or returning) the Heisman Trophy.
What's interesting about this bio is that one of those aforementioned national championships that Reggie helped USC win was vacated as part of the sanctions levied against USC following the same NCAA investigation that led to Reggie returning the Heisman.
Johnny Manziel advocated for Reggie Bush to get his Heisman Trophy back.
NFL Pro Football Hall of Famer, ESPN talking head, and host of the wildly popular Club Shay Shay podcast Shannon Sharpe had Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel on his Feb. 22, 2024, episode. Johnny, no stranger to controversy, absolutely believed Reggie should be given his Heisman back. “It’s legal now, what Reggie did then is legal now. In the grand scheme of things, I probably did way worse than Reggie,” Johnny says.
Based on what Johnny says on the show and on Twitter, it seems like fellow Heisman Trophy winners also wanted Reggie to be back with them. He said, “The way I was told, the last three or four years, I’ve been walking back into the Heisman, rallying the board, talking with the guys, there’s chatter, there’s chirp going around, nobody in this crew, this Heisman fraternity, sits rights with us that Reggie ain’t up there with us. He deserves to be up on that stage with us. Without a doubt.”
Reggie Bush received his Heisman Trophy back in April 2024.
On April 24, 2024, the Heisman Trophy Trust announced in a press release that it was reinstating Reggie's 2005 Heisman Memorial Trophy. With newer, and more lenient rules in place, it only seems fair, right? In the memo, Michael Comerford, President of The Heisman Trophy Trust said, “We are thrilled to welcome Reggie Bush back to the Heisman family in recognition of his collegiate accomplishments."
Comerford attributes the "enormous changes in college athletics over the last several years" as the determining factor in reinstating the trophy for Reggie. He further expressed, "We are so happy to welcome him back." And we're sure Reggie is overjoyed by the news as well!
In addition to Reggie receiving his Heisman Trophy back, a replica has also been returned to USC, and he will now be permitted to attend all future Heisman Trophy ceremonies.
