This Bush is a Guaranteed Winner

George W. Bush is not expected to carry California in the upcoming presidential election. Maybe it's because another Bush already has Southern California sewn up.

His name is Reggie Bush, he plays football for USC, and he's probably more popular in Los Angeles than the president.

If you don't know his name you will. If you don't know his position ... welcome to the club.

Reggie Bush is listed as a tailback, but that's like calling duct tape an adhesive. A better term might be "all-around playmaker who can line up anywhere and change the game in a matter of seconds."

Wide receiver? No problem. Bush has the second most catches on the team. Punt returner? Sure. Bush averages 10.8 yards, and his 33-yard run-back against Stanford set up the Trojans' game-winning touchdown. Kickoffs? Bush gets 22.9 yards per return. And of course, tailback. Bush is second on the team in rushing with 330 yards.

As former USC standout Mike Williams put it in the Trojans' media guide, "Reggie is the ultimate weapon."

Bush is not that tall (six-feet), and he's not that big (200 pounds). But he is fast. Really fast. Blinding.

People talk about a running back needing to get the corner on outside runs. Bush has the corner when he takes the handoff.

People talk about the cardinal sin of reversing field. Bush does it so well it should be called a virtue.

People talk about the need for patience, the need for a back to wait for the play to develop. Bush doesn't wait for anything. He sees a whole, he hits a hole.

But there are plenty of super-fast guys in college football. What sets Bush apart is his strength. And his vision. And his moves.

Bush is not one of those speed-demons who gets tackled if somebody grabs his shoelace. He brings a rare blend of speed and strength to the position. He can burst through the open field on one play and push the pile forward on the next one.

Vision? Stanford saw it firsthand last Saturday when Bush took a handoff up the middle at the 17-yard line, saw nothing, backed up like a remote-control car, took off for the corner, and scampered into the end zone.

And those moves. He jukes, he jitterbugs, he sidesteps, he turns on a dime without losing an ounce of speed. Pity the defensive backs who have to bring him down in the open field. And if Bush breaks a kickoff return, it's a guarantee that the kicker, that last line of defense, will fall down flailing at the sight of the first shimmy.

"I almost tackled him twice myself," said former USC center Norm Katnik, a man who is not supposed to tackle Bush.

Bush did not come out of nowhere. He was a standout at Helix High in La Mesa, Calif. And by standout, I mean all-everything. The list of the various All-America, All-State, and All-Region teams he was named to is 102 words long.

He had his pick of schools but decided to stay close to home and hop on Pete Carroll's quickly-accelerating rebuilding process at USC.

As a freshman last season, Bush didn't play all that much but still made defensive coordinators shiver when he stepped on the field. He never carried the ball more than 15 times in a game and never reached the 100-yard mark.

But he made plays, big ones. At Notre Dame he went untouched on a 58-yard touchdown run. He returned a kickoff 96 yards for a score against rival UCLA. And in the Rose Bowl win against Michigan -- the victory that gave the Trojans a share of the National Championship -- Bush touched the ball just 14 times on carries, catches and returns, but gobbled up 132 yards.

And this season, with an expanded role, Bush is still making plays, especially when the Trojans need it most.

In the season-opener against Virginia Tech, Bush almost single-handedly reversed a 10-7 halftime deficit with three touchdown catches. In a tough game against BYU, Bush carried the Trojans with 124 yards rushing and two touchdowns, one on the ground, one through the air. On the year, Bush has seven touchdowns.

Those plays are what make Bush so special. The speed and strength and moves are great. But his knack for stepping up in the clutch is what makes him the most exciting player in college football.

When he's in the game, you know something special could happen in a split second. Actually, you know something special will happen. The only surprise is what that special something will be. That's what makes people stand up and notice.

True, Reggie Bush won't get any write-in votes on presidential ballots.

But if he keeps doing what he's doing, he may get a few on Heisman ballots.

Except they won't be write-ins. Reggie will be on that list.