The punishment for USC due to their lack of institutional control was announced yesterday, as the school was hit with a two-year bowl ban, four years' probation, the loss of 30 scholarships over 3 years and forfeits of an entire year's games for improper benefits to Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush. It is also likely that the BCS could force USC to vacate the 2004 Championship, although when that will happen is uncertain. There is also a chance that Bush's 2005 Heisman Trophy could be in jeopardy. 



   Things are just falling about out in southern California. First your head coach, Pete Carroll, leaves for the NFL (sudden move makes more sense now, doesn't it?), then you hire the Village Idiot to replace him, then this. I honestly think that the punishment is ridiculous and was made only to make USC an example to the other schools. Yeah, I'm positive that USC is guilty of all the alleged infractions they did, but punishing the current players for something that happened when they were in high school and even middle school is crazy in my eyes. It's like if whoever owned your house before you successfully robbed a bank and was never caught sells you the house and skips town, and the police come in 5 years later and arrest you and send you to prison for it. I think once all the players and the head coach involved leaves the program, then the investigation is null and void. 

   Some people have said don't punish the school, but punish the people involved, a.k.a. Pete Carroll and Reggie Bush, but what are you going to do to them? The only thing you can do to Carroll is fine him, and I think he can afford it with the money he is making with the Seahawks (5 year, $33 million deal). The only thing you could do to Bush is take his Heisman away, but I think that would be another dumb move. Bush didn't take steroids, so all those gifts he received illegally didn't make him faster, stronger, or smarter on the gridiron. Reggie Bush absolutely lit up the football field in 2005, and he deserved the Heisman Trophy.

   Tommmy Tuberville is not satisfied with everything that's happened so far to USC. Tuberville, the former Auburn head coach, want his 2004 Tigers squad to be named national champions due to USC's scandal. Auburn went 13-0 in 2004 and finished #2 to USC. I don't think this can be done, and frankly I'm disappointed in Tuberville for this. He's at Texas Tech now; why does he even care about what happened at Auburn in 2004? Sure, they got screwed out of a chance to play for the national championship, but that was 6 years ago! Let it go! Maybe Tuberville's hoping somehow he can get a hold of that $300,000 bonus that Auburn would have given him for winning that championship.  

  Even if the BCS did want to give the national championship to someone else, I don't think you could give it to Auburn alone. I think Oklahoma could have an argument for the trophy. After all, they did make it to the title game, and since the team they faced should have been ineligible, they should have won the championship. If the BCS does award the 2004 National Championship to someone else (which is something I'm totally against), it has to be a split between Auburn and Oklahoma.  
 
  To end this blog, I just want to make it very clear that I am not saying that USC doesn't deserve punishment for what they did in 2004. I'm saying that USC doesn't deserve punishment for what they did in 2004 now.