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USC asks Pac-10 to eye Bush family, house reportESPN.com news services
LOS ANGELES -- The Pac-10 said Sunday it will investigate the reported connection between a home where Reggie Bush's family lived and a man who sought to market the Southern California star tailback.
Bush's family allegedly lived in the house in Spring Valley, Calif., owned by a man who had sought to handle the star tailback's professional marketing while Bush was still playing for USC, Yahoo.com reported Sunday.
Could Bush lose his Heisman?
The director of the Heisman Trophy Trust told ESPN's Joe Schad on Monday that he will reach out to board members to determine the potential ramifications of an investigation involving 2005 winner Reggie Bush.
"We're doing some soul searching ourselves right now," Rob Whalen said. "To the best of my knowledge no one has ever had a Heisman Trophy revoked."
Whalen said he's already begun to receive e-mails from Texas fans who believe runner up Vince Young should now receive the trophy.
"Clearly that's premature," Whalen said. "Let's see what happens and how this plays out."
The official Heisman ballot includes this wording: "In order that there will be no misunderstanding regarding the eligibility of a candidate, the recepient of the award MUST be a bonafide student of an accredited university. The recepient must be in compliance with the bylaws defining an NCAA student."
• Schad on Reggie Bush situation
The Web site reported that the family moved out of the house this weekend after questions over its ownership arose. Reporters from several news organizations visited the house on Thursday.
On Monday, David Cornwell, the attorney who represents Reggie Bush's family, told ESPN's Joe Schad that Reggie Bush had no knowledge of the "lease" agreement between his parents and San Diego businessman Michael Michaels, who owned the home the Bush family lived in.
"At this point, I'm not going to get into the particulars of the transactions between the family and Mr. Michaels," Cornwell said. "It is inapppropriate to presume that the Griffins did anything wrong."
Bush, the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner, chose to turn pro after his junior season with USC. He is expected to be the No. 1 pick in Saturday's NFL draft.
"Rather than jumping to conclusions, we need to determine the facts before commenting on this report,'' USC athletic director Mike Garrett said in a statement on Sunday. "We have asked the Pac-10 to look into this.''
Pac-10 spokesman Jim Muldoon confirmed to The Associated Press that an investigation will be held at the school's request, but had no further details.
Cornwell said Bush's parents will "cooperate fully" with any inquiry from the
Pac-10 or NCAA. Cornwell also suggested there is a logical explanation for the arrangement.
Members of Bush's camp are also expected to argue that the NCAA rules legislating "extra benefits" are not applicable in this case, because Michaels was not involved in the marketing of Bush.
At issue is the San Diego-area home's connection with Michaels, who reportedly attempted to steer Bush toward signing with San Diego agent David Caravantes, and sought to handle Bush's marketing with a new firm he had founded.
"They were trying to get me in front of [Bush] during the interview process, which I was never a part of," Caravantes said in an interview published in the
San Diego Union-Tribune. "They didn't try to recruit him for me. They thought it would be a good idea to have everything in San Diego. I think their concept was that they were going to deal with marketing, and they [needed] an agent ...
"If things worked out, we were going to try to put something together [to become business partners]. But everything was in waiting to see if they landed [Bush] to do the marketing. Nothing came of it."
State records showed construction was completed on the home in early 2005 and Michaels purchased it for $757,500 in late March, Yahoo reported.
Neighbors told Yahoo that Bush's mother Denise Griffin, stepfather LaMar Griffin and brother Jovan Griffin moved into the home shortly after that.
NCAA rules prohibit student-athletes and their families from receiving extra benefits from agents or their representatives. It can be a violation even if Bush had no knowledge of the transaction.
The Union-Tribune said it is unclear what rent Bush's mother and stepfather paid during their time in the house. If it is less than market value, the NCAA could consider that a violation, the newspaper said.
Bush eventually signed with a different agent and marketing firm.
"This time of year, falsely or unfalsely, this is the stuff that comes up," Mike Ornstein, one of Bush's current representatives, told the Union-Tribune. "It's a bunch of BS."
Information from The Associated Press is included in this report
.
