Tag: Reggie Bush

Steve Gleason’s blocked punt is the Saints Play of Day 37

Steve Gleason’s blocked punt is the Saints Play of Day 37. Where were you when No. 37 brought the Superdome to its feet?

There are 37 days left in our countdown to the New Orleans saints’ season opener, and there isn’t a better pick for the Saints Play of the Day than Steve Gleason’s iconic blocked punt.

Gleason, who of course wore the No. 37 jersey, was already a fan-favorite before he earned his place in Saints history — known for his brash sense of humor and devil-may-care style of play. He burst through the Atlanta Falcons line to block their punt in the game’s opening minutes, which was recovered by his teammate Curtis DeLoatch who returned it for a special teams touchdown.

That’s impressive enough, but circumstances are what made this such a special play. It was the first game the Saints played in front of their home crowd at the Superdome since Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans. It was a matchup against their oldest, bitterest rivals. And it was just the third game the Saints had played with Sean Payton, Drew Brees, and Reggie Bush in place as the new faces of the franchise.

And Gleason’s contributions to this win have been rightfully immortalized. There’s a bronze statue dedicated to his blocked punt in this “Rebirth” game standing outside the Superdome overlooking Champion’s Square that remains a popular pilgrimage site for Saints fans. Gleason’s battle with ALS in retirement has continued to keep him in fans’ minds, and plays like this one are why they fell in love with him in the first place.

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Reggie Bush weighs in on where Saints must improve to become true contenders

Reggie Bush weighed in on where the Saints must improve to become true contenders, and his list starts with the quarterback:

Reggie Bush quickly became one of the most impactful players the New Orleans Saints have had in recent memory after the team selected him second overall in the 2006 NFL draft. And he has some ideas about what they must do differently in order to become legitimate contenders in today’s game.

Finishing out his NFL career with 5,490 rushing yards and 36 touchdowns on the ground, Bush played an integral role in the Saints winning Super Bowl XLIV, and he retired with a career he could be proud of.

A lot has changed since then, as Bush acknowledged in a recent interview with Forbes, and there’s much to be done for the Saints to get back to their former status after finishing out 2023 with a forgettable 9-8 overall record.

Bush specifically pointed to quarterback as the first glaring problem to be fixed, but his list doesn’t end there.

“The reason why I think they struggle — I don’t have one specific area — but I think they have to improve at the quarterback position,” Bush told Forbes.com’s DJ Siddiqi. “They have to improve protecting the quarterback and then also on the defensive side of the ball as well. So many different things that I’ve really thought about, but they have to be better. And one of those things is at the quarterback position.”

The Saints have struggled to find a competent replacement at quarterback since the retirement of legendary signal-caller Drew Brees, experimenting with Taysom Hill, dealing with Jameis Winston falling short of the expectations set for him and lackluster play from Derek Carr.

Currently rolling with the veteran Carr, the Saints also have former South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler and former Fresno State passer Jake Haener behind him battling it out for the backup spot, with hopes to become something more. Maybe their new play caller Klint Kubiak can coax more out of Carr than Pete Carmichael was able to last season.

It will be interesting to see how things play out, but there’s no question that quarterback remains one of the Saints’ most problematic positions for the time being.

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USC’s Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush are given due respect in 247 rankings

247Sports put Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush at the top of a special list.

Brad Crawford of 247Sports put together his 50 all-time best playmaking duos in college football history. USC’s legendary duo of Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush rose to the top of his list.

Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush edged out the Bush and LenDale White for this ranking, but each tandem is worthy of merit.

Bush won the Heisman in 2005. He ran for 1,740 yards and 16 touchdowns on 200 carries. He was one of the key players along with Leinart who led USC to the BCS National Championship Game, where the Trojans fell just short to the Texas Longhorns.

Leinart threw for 10,693 yards and 99 touchdowns over three seasons as USC’s starter. He won the Heisman as a junior (2004) en route to a national championship. At one point, Leinart and Bush helped USC win 34 consecutive games. The two both picked in the first round of the NFL draft.

USC is getting respect in these historical rankings. Now the 2024 Trojans need to earn respect in the college football community.

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USC’s Reggie Bush unloads on NCAA, reflects on his Heisman, and much more

People still want to hear more from Reggie Bush about his NCAA odyssey and his reclaimed Heisman Trophy.

Former NFL running back and USC superstar Reggie Bush is one of the greatest college football players ever. Bush joins Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson for an exclusive interview on the latest episode of “All The Smoke.”

The former USC Trojan Bush also unloads on the NCAA, explains his lawsuit against them, and his reaction to getting his Heisman back. Plus, he shares his thoughts on NIL, the return of college football game CFB 2025, and discusses the epic 2006 national title game between USC and Texas, including his relationship with rival Vince Young.

He also, he opens up about his NFL career, including joining the Saints in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and playing for Sean Payton. Bush also talks about playing for Pete Carroll, his iconic on-field swag, and his transition to media. There are so many aspects to Reggie Bush’s life story within and beyond football. He is still a compelling interview, and people still want to hear what he has to say. It is all very understandable.

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Reggie Bush expects Caleb Williams to have a monster rookie season and career

Reggie Bush is a Caleb Williams believer.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft, former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams, makes his NFL debut soon. Former USC legend Reggie Bush has massive expectations.

Bush, who also entered the NFL with high expectations as the No. 2 overall pick in 2006 and a Heisman Trophy winner in his own right, spoke of his relationship with Williams and his thoughts on the highly regarded quarterback as he enters his rookie season.

“I’ve spoken to Caleb multiple times, Bush told Forbes/ and I’m really excited for him because he’s bringing something to the game,” said Bush in an exclusive one-on-one interview. “He’s bringing excitement to the game. Love the way he plays the game. I was obviously a huge fan when he came to USC and it’s insane what him and Lincoln Riley did together. It was really fun to watch and really fun to see.”

The 22-year-old former Trojan quarterback – who has been compared to four-time NFL MVP’s Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers — enters a favorable situation in terms of the talent on the Bears’ roster, with veteran receivers Keenan Allen and DJ Moore catching passes from Caleb along with fellow first-round pick Rome Odunze.

Bush believes that Williams will one day be considered among the best quarterbacks in the game, players who excel at not only keeping their eyes down the field, but also extending plays with their legs.

“That’s what makes Patrick Mahomes so great,” says Bush. “That’s what makes Josh Allen so great — and Lamar Jackson. These are the type of players I believe Caleb Williams is going to be considered at the top of his game amongst those guys.”

Caleb is also joined in Chicago by reigning Pro Bowl running back D’Andre Swift and tight end Cole Kmet, who is coming off of a 73-catch season.

Bush does point out that Williams is playing in one of the toughest divisions in football in the NFC North. The Detroit Lions are the reigning division champions. They advanced to the NFC Championship Game last season. Meanwhile, the Green Bay Packers came within a possession of upsetting the San Francisco 49ers and advancing to the NFC title game. Also keep in mind that the Minnesota Vikings were a perennial playoff team before Kirk Cousins’ injury. They added Sam Darnold, another former Trojan, and first round pick JJ McCarthy to a solid roster for Kevin O’Connell.

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Reggie Bush’s 61-yard TD is the Saints Play of the Day

Here’s your New Orleans Saints Play of the Day: Reggie Bush’s 61-yard game-breaking touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys back in 2006.

We’ve got 61 days left until the New Orleans Saints kick off their 2024 regular season, which makes Reggie Bush’s 61-yard touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys our Saints Play of the Day.

This was a game-breaker. The Saints were already up 21-10 early in the third quarter, having made the trip to old Texas Stadium (where the Cowboys played from 1971 to 2008, until they moved into Jerry Jones’ shiny new AT&T Stadium). But Sean Payton was determined to keep pouring it on his mentor Bill Parcells. Each team hit the field with an 8-4 record and Payton intended on leaving no doubt about which was the better squad.

So he dialed up a screen play for Bush, the rookie Heisman Trophy winner who had excited all of Louisiana. Drew Brees looked left and looped a pass to Bush in the flat. With several blockers in front of him it was all too easy for Bush to  cut through the Cowboys defense and extend New Orleans’ lead.

It’s a classic game now (watch the broadcast sometime if you can find it; John Madden and Al Michaels were great in prime time), but for many NFL fans this was the moment when the Saints truly arrived and proved they were more than a feel-good story in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The Cowboys were favored by a touchdown and the over/under was set at 48 points, but the Saints wound up winning it 42-17, stunning the league in the process. Brees threw five touchdown passes and was only sacked once, while Bush totaled 162 scrimmage yards off of just a dozen touches. How’s that for a “welcome to the NFL” moment?

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Reggie Bush’s 71-yard punt return touchdown is the Saints Play of the Day

Reggie Bush’s 71-yard punt return touchdown against the Vikings back in 2008 is the New Orleans Saints Play of the Day:

It’s often been said that Reggie Bush joined the New Orleans Saints a generation too early. The college football superstar had an inconsistent pro career in black and gold, experiencing terrific highs and frustrating lows as Sean Payton’s coaching staff struggled to figure out how to use him. The role Bush pioneered in New Orleans was later developed by Darren Sproles and perfected by Alvin Kamara, and it’s fair to wonder how things might have gone had he enjoyed the benefits of a more experienced play caller.

But he was always dangerous on special teams. Bush scored four punt return yards in regular season games and a fifth in the playoffs. And when the Minnesota Vikings visited the Saints for a “Monday Night Football” matchup in 2008, Bush turned in his best performance yet with a 71-yard punt return touchdown.

Bush turned on the jets to rally back after the Vikings took an early 20-10 lead, which you can watch here on YouTube. It was the longest punt return of Bush’s NFL career. And while it was just the first of two punts returned for touchdowns he had against the Vikings that night, he nearly had a third, having gotten a favorable angle on the Minnesota coverage team before his cleats caught in the Superdome turf, tripping him up.

The Vikings ended up winning this one after a rough end-of-game sequence (Saints kicker Matt Gramatica missed a 46-yard field goal for the win, and a 42-yard pass interference penalty on safety Kevin Kaesviharn flipped the field to set up a chip-shot kick for Minnesota) but New Orleans got the last laugh. They hosted the next year’s NFC championship game and beat the Vikings in overtime to advance to Super Bowl XLIV. You know what happened next.

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Saints have two draft classes rank in the top 10 of the century

ESPN ranked the best draft classes of the 21st century, with two historic New Orleans Saints hauls ranking inside the top-10:

ESPN’s Aaron Schatz recently ranked the 12 best draft classes of the 21st century, and the New Orleans Saints made the list twice. Not only is New Orleans on the list twice, they found themselves in the top 10 both times. Their iconic 2017 and 2006 draft classes come in at tenth and first on ESPN’s list.

The 2017 class was the first to make an appearance at tenth overall. The Saints nailed all six of their selections in the first three rounds and those players became foundational pieces for the new era of the New Orleans Saints. Running back Alvin Kamara and cornerback Marshon Lattimore are arguably the best in franchise history at their positions.

The luxury to argue who’s the best player from this class between Kamara, Lattimore and former All-Pro right tackle Ryan Ramczyk is proof of how strong this class is. Free safety Marcus Williams and defensive end Trey Hendrickson were valuable assets before migrating to the AFC North.

However, the 2006 draft class came in as the best draft class of the century. Star running back Reggie Bush, Pro Football Hall of Fame candidate Jahri Evans and forever-underrated wideout Marques Colston were the headliners from the class. Evans has been a Hall of Fame finalist for the past two years and Colston remains one of the most slept-on wide receivers at his position. Safety Roman Harper was also a consistent starter for the Saints, as was right tackle Zach Strief.

The legacy of the 2006 offseason goes beyond just the draft class. Sean Payton and Drew Brees also joined the team that year. This was the beginning of the Saints’ Golden Age.

2006 was a talented year and many teams took advantage of it. The Saints class capped off the list, and the Denver Broncos started the list at No. 12. They selected Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall in this draft. The Cincinnati Bengals made their second appearance on the list at seventh with a class, led by future Hall of Famer and Louisiana native Andrew Whitworth. A lot of teams got better in 2006, but none improved as greatly as the Saints did.

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Reggie Bush clears first hurdle in defamation suit against NCAA

The NCAA loses again. Reggie Bush’s defamation lawsuit continues.

Reggie Bush is making progress in his defamation suit against the NCAA. Per CBS Sports, a judge denied the NCAA’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

We noted last year that Bush simply could not avoid pursuing this line of litigation:

“He is tired of enduring what he thinks is an injury to his reputation, all while 2012 Heisman winner Johnny Manziel (in a recent documentary) was plainly involved in all sorts of entanglements without being given the same scale or severity of penalties Bush has had to deal with.

“That difference between Bush’s and Manziel’s separate fates is one of several reasons why Bush decided to do what he did on Tuesday: Go forward with a defamation lawsuit against the NCAA.”

Now the lawsuit can move forward. Bush received his 2005 Heisman Trophy earlier this year. The powers that be in college football, in light of everything happening in the NIL space and the larger realm in which players are now getting paid to play college football, made it impossible to continue withholding the trophy Bush earned on the field. Bush, however, is not done trying to restore his good name.

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Notre Dame and USC’s Best Rivalry Photos Over the Years

Not just the best intersectional rivalry in college football, but one of the absolute best rivalries in the game as well…

The end of the Pac 12 earlier in the week along with news of USC trying to ditch LSU from their schedule this fall have put the Trojans largely in the news in recent days.

On Wednesday, national sports talker Colin Cowherd voiced his opinion that USC should take things a step further as they move to the Big Ten and discontinue their annual rivalry with Notre Dame.

Nobody here would be interested in that but as it’s in the news, we certainly discuss it.

Although you won’t confuse anyone here at Fighting Irish Wire with being a USC fan by any means, its safe to say the understanding of importance that the two programs have meant to each other historically isn’t missed.

Notre Dame and USC are slated to play this Thanksgiving weekend in Los Angeles and again next October in South Bend.

And the good lord willing, for decades and decades alternating home venues to come.

In honor of not just the best intersectional rivalry in sports, but one of the absolute best rivalries in all of college football, check out some of the very best photos of the Notre Dame-USC rivalry over the years below.