Stealing Greatness: Jordan Chiles and Reggie Bush's Stolen Achievements

In 2021, the Athletic published an article listing the most exciting college football players ever. Number one was Michael Vick. The uber-athletic lefty quarterback literally hurt players with his juke moves and had a shotgun for an arm. At number two was Reggie Bush. That same year, Fox Sports put out a list of the top ten college football players of all time. Once again, Reggie Bush was two. Bush has always been regarded as one of the greatest ever in college football. People would even describe using the same adjectives. They say he was "electric," "special," "unstoppable," and "the greatest."

In 2005, Reggie Bush won the Heisman trophy. He finished the year with over 2200 all-purpose yards and nineteen total touchdowns. Bush was all the hype that year and was the clear Heisman winner by a large margin. Bush received a staggering 784 first-place votes—more than ten times more first-place votes than the guy in second place. In 2010, it was revealed that Reggie Bush was receiving "improper benefits" that broke the NCAA rules during his time at USC. The benefits included cash, travel expenses, and a rent-free home in San Diego for his parents. After revealing this, the NCAA wiped Bush's stats from USC, and even his high school records received astricks. The whole situation was heartbreaking, and to make matters worse, Bush had to give back his Heisman Trophy.

I grew up a massive football fan and became obsessed with the sport since I was six. I would research every player in the NFL and watch as many documentaries as possible. It took me a while to get into college football, however. That was until 2011. In the late summer of 2011, I sat in my living room watching a random TV show that came on after dinner. It was a Sunday night and the first day of school in the morning. Anxious about starting the fifth grade, I distracted myself by watching this show called "Same Name." "Same Name" was a reality TV show that lasted one season and ran exactly four episodes in the summer of 2011. The show's premise was to find regular people with the same name as celebrities and then have them swap lives with that celebrity. It was an excellent idea, even if it was a slight rip-off of "Wife Swap."

The last episode ever released aired on Sunday, August 14th, 2011. This would be the first and last episode I ever saw of the show. The celebrity for this episode was Reggie Bush. Reggie Bush swapped lives with another Reggie Bush. The other Reggie Bush was an old white farmer from a small town in Illinois. It was a heartwarming episode that showed the difficulties of a family living in a small country town and contrasted it with the high life of big city Los Angeles. The reason I remember this episode so well was because of one scene. The NFL running back, Reggie Bush, is driving a truck to work at the other Reggie Bush's job. In the truck are two of the other Reggie Bush's coworkers.

The coworker in the passenger seat is in awe of Bush and smiling ear to ear throughout the scene, never taking his eyes off of Bush. The guy is yapping up a storm, trying to make the most of this car ride with the football superstar. But then the coworker pauses for a moment. His smile drops, and he turns forward to look at the road. His tone lowers, and in almost an interrogating way, he asks Bush, "So why did you give the Heisman back?" He sounded disappointed. He asked as if it was Bush's idea to give back his most prized possession. Reggie was caught entirely off guard and turned his head away to look out the driver's side window. Bush began to chomp on his gum aggressively, and though he didn't say it, you could tell he wanted nothing more than to jump out of that truck. The silence lasts only about two seconds but feels like ten minutes. Breaking the silence, the coworker says in a defeated voice, "You earned that, man." Bush gathered himself and went into what felt like a prepared statement that, even as a ten-year-old, I knew wasn't the truth. Bush said it was hard, but it was the right thing to do. It's one of those cheesy lines that reality TV shows loved in the early 2010s. While he said that, though, the look on his face gave his honest answer. Bush was pissed, he was robbed, he was betrayed, he was made a mockery of, and nothing haunts him more than talking about the Heisman trophy that was stolen from him.

After the show ended, I hopped on the family computer and looked up "Reggie Bush USC highlights." I had never seen his college highlights, as I was about four years old when he won the Heisman in '05. All I knew about Bush was that he played for the Saints, and he once jumped from the six-yard line and landed in the endzone, traveling about twenty feet in the air in full shoulder pads and a helmet. I quickly learned that that play was mere child's play compared to what he did to defenses at USC. It looked like the defense wasn't even moving. He was so fast. I compared it to having a 99-speed player in Madden and then playing against a team with only 60-speed. The dominance that Bush had was jaw-dropping. The way he would weave between players was physics-defying, and it had me running around the house with my football for weeks afterward. I used to stand on one side of the house and sprint to the end. I juked out couches and spun around the kitchen table, then leaped across my bed with the ball, fully stretching out my arms to reach the pylon (my pillow.) I wanted to be like Reggie.

Something else happened after I finished watching his highlights. I became rageful. It was a different rage than I had ever experienced at that point in my life. There was rage but also mixed with sadness and hopelessness. I was mad at how they could take his Heisman away. I thought it was a crime that they would do such a thing to a player who was so much better than everyone else. Sure, it made sense if Reggie was using steroids or tying opposing players' shoelaces together, but receiving money? That's ridiculous. All of my favorite football players in the NFL get paid so why is it when Reggie got paid, it was so wrong? I felt terrible for Reggie. I could see on his face during that failed reality TV show episode that it hurt him. That he, more than anyone, knew that it wasn't fair, and there was nothing he could do about it. There was nothing I could do about it. His trophy was gone.

As I grew up, I became adept and knowledgeable about various sports. I love the competition, and most importantly, I love to see great athletes dominate. This is why I am ecstatic when the Olympics come every four years. The US has always been an absolute powerhouse at the games, and this year was no different. The US won 127 total medals, thirty-six more than second place. Another record-breaking year gave me more lifelong memories of athletic greatness. Then the news broke. Jordan Chiles, a gold medal-winning US gymnastics team member, has to give back her bronze medal. Jordan won bronze in the gymnastics floor exercise on August 5th. Less than five days later, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) wanted her medal. Here's what happened.

After Jordan's floor routine, she was awarded a score that put her in fifth place. In gymnastics, you can request an inquiry for a score within a minute after the score is released. The judges cannot change the score if you don't submit the inquiry on time. The inquiry tells the judges, "Hey, can you reevaluate her score and update it because we think she deserves higher." After Chiles' coach requested an inquiry about her score, the appeal resulted in a higher score, bumping her into third place and securing her bronze medal.

A few days after she won the bronze medal, had her ceremony, and was about to take a plane home from Paris, the IOC called for her medal. Remember that rule about only having one minute to submit an inquiry? The IOC alleged that the US sent theirs in one minute and four seconds after Chile's first score was released. This, in turn, disqualifies the new score, thus leaving her with the original score that put her in fifth place. That alone is ridiculous and unfair, but it only gets worse. The US fires back by showing video evidence of Chiles' coach submitting the inquiry within one minute of the allotted time TWICE. Not only did they beat the ridiculous one-minute deadline, but they did so twice and on video.

Despite this indisputable fact, the IOC still refuses to award Chiles the medal and requests the medal to be returned immediately. Now, being a man in my early twenties, I have felt rage at the establishment and those in power many times, and this time was no different. It was the same, except a part of me was drawn to the past. This whole situation reminded me of Reggie Bush. I was transported back to 2011 when I first learned about what they did to Reggie. I felt the same sadness and hopelessness as I did then. The cruelty and power the people in suits have over others drained me. I felt hopeless.

The NIL laws were enacted on July 1st, 2021. The law would allow college players to profit from their name, image, and likeness. This included receiving sponsorship deals and many other opportunities for athletes to make money. If this law had been around in 2005, Reggie would not have been punished and could still keep his Heisman Trophy. Ever since Reggie Bush had his Heisman taken away, fans across the country lobbied for its return. This was amplified when the NIL laws were introduced. The crowds were ruthless on social media. Many points were echoed about how punishing Bush for something that would be allowed today wasn't fair. Even former Heisman winners like Johnny Manziel were in on the campaign.

Finally, after fourteen long years, the NCAA returned the 2005 Heisman trophy home to its rightful owner. On April 24th, 2024, it was announced that Reggie Bush would get this Heisman Trophy back after the "enormous changes in the college football landscape." This was a victory for Reggie Bush and sports in general. Hardly ever will you see an athlete be stripped of a title and then get it back, but we live in different times. People have stronger voices now than ever before. I guarantee the NCAA would still hold Bush's Heisman if everyone were quiet. The people put pressure on the NCAA; they let their concerns be known, and when the rules changed, the NCAA finally did the right thing.

I don't know when, but I think the same will happen for Jordan Chiles. The one-minute inquiry rule is as dumb as the old rules about college players being unable to profit from their names. I believe that the one-minute inquiry rule will change. I believe that people will not quietly go about her stolen medal, and the US will continue to fight for it. We should all fight for Jordan, just like we did for Reggie. Without an outcry, there is no change. Without protest, there is no change. Pressure needs to be applied to the IOC. They need to know what we think of them and what they did. It won't be easy, and it won't be fast, but we will not lose. Jordan Chiles earned that medal. She worked her whole life for that medal. She did nothing to lose it, and they stole it from her. The IOC will return it one day, and I'll think about my pal Reggie when that day comes.

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