A couple of weeks ago, one of the Fox Sports Net channels was showing USC legend Reggie Bush's most jawdropping collegiate performance: Nov 19, 2005, versus Fresno State, at the Coliseum, the eleventh game ofReggie's Heisman Trophy-winning junior year. 294 yards rushing on 23 carries with 2 touchdowns. 3 cathes for 68 yards. 135 yards on 7 kickoff returns and another 16 on a punt return. 513 all-purpose yards in a hard fought 50-42 win.
Probably the most indelible highlight from that masterpiece came towards the end of the third quarter, with the Trojans ahead 34-28, when Bush took the handoff from Matt Leinart, dashed through an opening and sprinted to the left side sideline. An inch from steeping out of bounds and with a defender reaching at him, Reggie puts on the breaks for a split second - a split second - puts the ball behind his back and switches field for a long touchdown. We've all seen that play a million times.
On an earlier lengthy run, in which he came within about half a yard from scoring another touchdown, his right long sleeve was ripped as he dove for the goal line, and when he got up he feigned pulling back his jersey to show the figurative 'S' on his chest while pounding on his heart like Kobe Bean. Indeed, he was Superman.
So you can understand why, for the life of me, I can't understand how this guy is only a mediocre NFL running back. I just wanna know why. As I read once on the WWW, Reggie was the best player to ever come out of college, meaning that If you were to take every player who ever entered the draft and retroactively give them a rating - based on how good they were at the time they entered the league - Bush would get the highest score.
Reggie Bush averaged 8.7 yards a carry his junior year at SC, and 9.7 yards a touch. The Human First Down. This was a world class athlete with the vision of LT and the moves of Barry. The evolutionary Gale Sayers. He couldn't miss.
And remember his first preseason game against the Titans, the 42-yard cutback that had everybody gaga? Perhaps no rookie had ever come into the league with more hype. And never has there been a rookie more deserving of such universal laud and adulation. He was that good.
So what happened next? Well, for the most part, he stunk out the joint in the first half of his rookie season. You didn't hear much about it because A) the Saints were winning, and B) nobody had the balls to criticize the great Reggie Bush in plain sight. Instead, everybody talked about how valuable he was as a "decoy."
Was the attention Bush's gamebreaking potential demanded having a large impact on the Saints' success? Absolutely. Was he catching a lot of passes? Sure (even though he had a low YPC). But he was running the ball like suey and he wasn't making any big plays. Through the first eight games of his career, Reggie Bush had zero touchdowns.
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4 months ago
He looked incredibly impressive his rookie year at times, however you're right, its clear that he couldn't carry the team on his back last year. He's speedy and explosive, however he needs to also value patience and pick his spots. I like Bush and I hope that he can reach at least part of the potential people bestowed upon him when he was drafted.
4 months ago
You hit the nail on the head, he needs to slow down, and have patients. He is always trying to hit a home run, because that is what we expect of him. He came into the league as a college football god, He had more endorsements than most players put together. He is not an everydown back, he is to top heavy, you hit him and he will go down.
Barry Sanders had a lower center of Gravity, thats why he could come out of a pile of tacklers, Reggie has moves, but he has to have the room to make them. The NFL is the best of the best, and until he learns paitients, and as you said, decides to be great, and not content with who he is now. He will continue to fail. He can be Great, and New Orleans with Sean Peyton is the best place for him to be to do this.
I think he has been humbled, and he will not be happy with just being the best College player ever, he will want to be someday in the HOF.
So if he stays healthy, I feel he will have his year in 2008.
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