USC Football Welcomes Back Reggie Bush After NCAA Ban Ends

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Former USC Trojans running back Reggie Bush is considered one of the best college football players of all-time. Yet, due to a ruling by the NCAA that Bush received "improper benefits" while in school, Bush's name has largely been disassociated from the school.

Now, that disassociation has come to an end. The USC Football Twitter account put out a video on Wednesday morning with a compilation of Bush's highlights from his time at USC saying "Welcome Home @ReggieBush".

In a letter to Bush today, USC President Carol L. Folt told Bush "I am pleased to inform you that all restrictions and prohibitions on your involvement in our athletics program are officially removed and you will be afforded the privileges and courtesies extended to all Trojan football alumni."

As part of a press release from the athletics department, new athletic director Mike Bohn said that since he has been hired he was listening to former players, alumni and fans and there was a consistent theme: the impact Bush had on the program.

"Throughout this process, one of the consistent themes that emerged from my discussions was how much Reggie Bush means to our former players, USC alumni, and fans everywhere," said Bohn in a statement. "I've enjoyed getting to know Reggie and so many of his teammates, and I'm pleased his disassociation has ended so that we can welcome him back to our family. I'm confident that Reggie will use his incredible platform and influential voice to support and empower all of our student-athletes."

The process comes 10 years after the NCAA Committee on Infractions imposed sanctions on the school and vacated Bush's 2005 Heisman Trophy win due to the "improper benefits". According to ESPN, the timing for the reinstatement comes due to a rule passed by the Committee on Infractions in 2017 that "limits any mandated disassociation between an individual and a school to 10 years."

The sanctions that were imposed on the school arose as the result of a four years long investigation into extra benefits that found that Bush and his family members accepted cash, travel expenses and a home in the San Diego area where his parents lived rent-free for a year while he was a student athlete. As a result, Bush's name, stats and awards were noted with an asterisk in the team's media guide. Bush has not been welcome on campus during the last 10 years and has not been involved with the program.

Now an analyst for FOX's college football studio show, there is no timetable for when his reinstatement will be finalized.