The NCAA, Pac-12 Convention and USC are searching for the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by former Trojans star operating again Reggie Bush on the grounds that his claims of antitrust violations and misplaced identify, picture and likeness compensation from his Heisman-winning tenure at USC come “at least a decade and a half too late.”
However in filings this week with the Los Angeles Superior Courtroom, attorneys for the NCAA, Pac-12 and USC got down to dismantle these claims, arguing that Bush’s “effort to wind back the clock” needs to be barred by the statute of limitations, which is often 4 years in antitrust circumstances. Bush final performed at USC in 2005.
“Any such claims accrued no later than 2005, meaning that his suit comes at least a decade and a half too late,” the NCAA’s attorneys wrote. “And while [Bush] gestures at several exceptions to the statutes of limitations [in his lawsuit], he offers no well-pleaded allegations showing a plausible entitlement to any of them.”
The NCAA’s attorneys argue that not solely was Bush’s lawsuit filed too late, however that it’s additionally “legally insufficient” with “few facts at all beyond a summary of [Bush’s] playing career.”
“Such a bare-bones complaint does not suffice under California law,” the attorneys wrote.
Moreover, they declare Bush is sure by beforehand litigated claims towards the NCAA relating to entry to NIL and his place as member of a licensed class in previous lawsuits, together with O’Bannon vs. NCAA, “makes it inexcusable for him to have waited over a decade more to bring a similar claim yet again.”
USC mentioned in a press release it was “proud of the exceptional support it offers its current and former student-athletes, including Reggie Bush, whose efforts to recover his Heisman Trophy we fully and publicly supported.”
“The claims in the lawsuit, however, date back nearly 20 years, are completely barred by the statute of limitations and, regardless, lack any legal or factual merit. USC has asked the court to dismiss these claims as a matter of law, and we will continue to defend ourselves in court.”
In suing the NCAA, Bush’s attorneys mentioned he hoped to “pave the way for a system where athletes are rightfully recognized, compensated and treated fairly for their contributions.”
Throughout his three seasons at USC, no school athlete in America was extra recognizable than Bush, whose electrical capacity helped lead the Trojans to a nationwide title in 2004 and earned him the Heisman Trophy as the most effective participant in school soccer in 2005.
However in 2010, lengthy after Bush had left for the NFL, the NCAA discovered that Bush and his household had accepted improper advantages throughout his school tenure and imposed harsh sanctions on USC, together with a complete disassociation from Bush, whose identify and picture was scrubbed fully from the college and its report books. Bush was additionally pressured to relinquish his Heisman Trophy, because the Heisman Belief refused for over a decade to acknowledge him as one among its winners.
That modified earlier this 12 months after a prolonged marketing campaign from Bush and his attorneys, because the Heisman Belief reversed course on its long-standing resolution. The trophy was returned in April to Bush, who instantly turned his ire to the NCAA. He vowed to struggle till his information from 2004 and 2005 have been reinstated, together with USC’s wins throughout its 2004 championship season.
“This is just the beginning of the journey to getting full justice,” one among Bush’s attorneys, Ben Crump, mentioned on the time.
Bush’s authorized staff sought USC’s assist in that struggle this previous fall. They requested that the college “get behind” Bush’s efforts to get his information reinstated and in addition reimburse Bush for his attorneys charges.
“Reggie Bush received all the accolades a college football athlete could receive during his three years playing football at USC,” the lawsuit acknowledged. “And while Bush received the accolades, Defendants NCAA, USC, and the Pac-12 Conference received all the money.”
How a lot Bush is asking for in restitution from the three defendants remains to be unclear. In an interview with The Instances, one among Bush’s attorneys mentioned specialists advised him USC made “hundreds of millions” off of Bush throughout his tenure as a Trojan. However the subject of again NIL pay had by no means been broached with USC earlier than the lawsuit was filed. And the grievance itself is essentially devoid of specifics because it pertains to income or NIL estimates.
As a part of the lawsuit, Bush’s authorized staff did request a trove of paperwork, based on courtroom filings, together with income figures from jersey gross sales, video video games gross sales and TV offers, in addition to any communication between the NCAA, USC, Pete Carroll or the Heisman Belief. Attorneys for the defendants dismissed the request for paperwork as “needlessly burdensome.”
The authorized groups on either side of Bush’s lawsuit met final week through video convention to debate the grievance and hash out their variations. However no settlement may very well be reached, based on courtroom filings.
