Reggie Bush.

I never liked the guy for two reasons.

Reason #1, in the 2006 draft, he was picked second overall in the first round by the New Orleans Saints instead of being taken first overall by the Houston Texans. Granted that there was much national hype as to who would be taken first overall, Bush or Vince Young. Both are dynamic players but in the end, the Texans made all the right moves in the past five years and the continued solid play from Mario Williams ever since being taken first the the 2006 draft shows that the Texans had made the right decision all along.

Why Bush being taken second overall irked me was because of his reaction. Sure, he was the best player in the draft, but he did not fill a need for the Texans. What was with the disappointed look? I’ll admit that I was envious of his position. Being possibly the best offensive player in college history and having the opportunity to play in the NFL would have been enough for me even if I was taken in the seventh round! I could not respect a guy who was crying over not being taken first overall.

Reason #2, when he entered the NFL, he was nothing more than a utility back. So far, all he has been known for in his career is his ability to return kick offs and punts and catching the occasional swing pass in the flat. I’ll even give him his ability to run outside of the tackles. But as an NFL caliber running back, you have to be able to run in between the tackles!

Let’s review the top five running backs in the NFL of 2009. In this order: Chris Johnson of the Tennessee Titans, Steven Jackson of the St Louis Rams, Thomas Jones of the New York Jets, Maurice Jones-Drew of the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings. Reggie Bush’s position in top rushing category? Number 48. His position as an overall running back? #55. If you’re going to cry about not being the first overall pick, show that you can be a top back in the league!

However, I now have a lot of respect for this guy. I can’t even begin to imagine what it would feel like to win the Heisman Trophy. I also can’t even begin to comprehend how you can decide to give it back. I agree with the arguments that there are a lot of student athletes who broke and are still breaking the rules just like Bush did and never get caught, and I also agree that it sucks for Bush to take the full brunt of criticism and punishment because he did get caught, but rules are rules. But when it all came down to it, Reggie Bush manned up and did the right thing. Much respect as a man.

Now only if his play reflected that on the field… Just kidding! but seriously.

Also, the lesson learned is that no one wins when you break the rules. I hope that the lesson learned today by current student athletes is to follow the rules, not that they should keep breaking the rules and be better at hiding it.

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