Reggie Bush voices concerns over paying college athletes: 'It's going to destroy some people'

Former USC star, Heisman Trophy winner and current FOX Sports analyst Reggie Bush has recently voiced some concerns over the NCAA Board of Governors’ recent recommendation to begin allowing student-athletes to profit off their name, image and likeness.

Bush — who was the winner of the 2005 Heisman Trophy before forfeiting the award after it was learned he received improper benefits at USC — recently spoke with Playboy Magazine about the idea of student-athletes being compensated for name, image and likeness. The former college star believes it could be a slippery slope.

“Guidance is the one thing that young athletes coming through the college system miss on so much,” Bush said in the interview. “I missed on it. They’re about to start paying college athletes. This is something that has never been experienced before, and it’s going to destroy some people if their foundation is not in the right place.”

The new proposal from the board of governors suggests the NCAA should change its rules and guidelines to profit off their name, image and likeness via advertising, potential endorsement deals and social media influencing. Those student-athletes can reference their school and sport but will not be permitted to use team or conference logos.

While many generally consider the idea of student-athletes being compensated a step in the right direction, there are still some concerns. Bush says that players will become “open targets” if they don’t have a strong financial knowledge or foundation.

“People just assume, ‘Well, you got all this money, so you’re good.’ It’s actually the opposite. The more money you have, the more danger you’re in, because now you’re a freaking open target for a lot of people. It’s a nasty world out there, and it’s about to get nastier. You’re going to really start to see the true colors of a lot of people, and a lot of businesses too. You’re going to see people doing some crazy stuff to make money, because our market is crashing.”

Change could be coming as early as the 2021-22 academic year, with a vote coming on the matter from the NCAA scheduled for January 2021.