by Scott Sokol

Before predicting the future, let’s take a quick look at what’s happened for Reggie Bush over the last few years:

January 2005:

USC blows out Oklahoma 55-19 in the Orange Bowl, capping a 13-0 Championship season. Bush, a sophomore, finishes the season with more than 1,400 total yards and 13 total touchdowns.

January 2006:

Bush wins the Heisman Trophy with 1,740 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns to go with 478 receiving yards and two touchdown catches. Vince Young’s heroics in the Rose Bowl lead Texas to a dramatic 41-38 victory and stop a third straight National Championship for USC. In April, the Saints pick Bush second in the NFL draft after the Texans surprisingly select Defensive End Mario Williams Number One.

January 2007:

Bush starts his rookie season with only one touchdown in his first 11 games, but he quiets the doubters and electrifies Post-Katrina New Orleans with sensational runs reminiscent of USC and seven touchdowns in his last five games. Bush, along with new quarterback Drew Brees, new coach Sean Payton, and fellow rookie Marques Colston lead the shocking Saints all the way to the NFC Championship game.

January 2008:

A first or second round pick in many fantasy leagues, Reggie Bush has a terrible sophomore slump. Backfield mate Deuce McAllister tears his ACL the first game of the year and Bush proves ill-equipped to carry the load, finishing the year with under 1,000 total yards, and 6 touchdowns to his 8 fumbles. He sits out the last four games with a knee injury and gives way to a more successful Aaron Stecker. He is labeled a fantasy bust.

Well, tough to argue against his bust status for this year, but do not write off Reggie Bush. A player that talented has lots of opportunities to bounce back and you should expect him to do just that.

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Based on his skill set and because he’s been part of a running back by committee system up until this year, two players Bush can easily be compared with are Tiki Barber and Brian Westbrook.

Tiki started his career as a third down back and return specialist before he was dubbed Lightning to Ron Dayne’s Thunder in the Giants split backfield for 2000 and 2001. It wasn’t until 2002, when Tiki was 27 years old, that he had his first great season. That year Tiki finished just shy of 2,000 total yards with 11 rushing touchdowns. He had more than 2,000 total yards in each of his last three seasons in ’04, ’05, and ’06.

Just like Tiki, Brian Westbrook started his career as a return man, and most of his time at running back came on passing downs giving way to the bigger Duce Staley and Correll Buckhalter. Although he had some solid years, Westbrook’s breakout came in 2006, at age 27, when he had more than 1,900 total yards and 11 touchdowns. He followed that up this year topping 2,100 yards with 12 TDs.

Its pretty common to hear an NFL analyst say something like "The Eagles thought Westbrook was only a third down back, but he’s proven he can do much more than that," or "The Giants didn’t think Tiki could handle the load as an every down back, but he’s shown he’s more than capable."

Everybody sort of assumes the Giants and Eagles didn’t know how good Barber and Westbrook were, but it’s just as plausible that they weren’t as good early in their career as they were at 27.

So maybe the same thing will happen with Reggie Bush. Bush split carries at USC with the Titans’ LenDale White and then with Deuce McAllister last year. At only 22 years old, Reggie Bush just might not have been ready for a season as a featured back in the NFL. His season also couldn’t have been helped by the torn knee ligament that bothered him down the stretch and forced him to sit out the final four games.

Next year should be a big bounce back for Bush. Rehabbing the knee injury will force him to work hard to get back into shape, and the difficult season undoubtedly gave Bush some perspective for what it takes to be a successful running back in the NFL.

Even though he won’t get as many carries, the return of Deuce McAllister should help Bush’s production as the Saints will probably give him the lion’s share of the carries and will split him out wide the way they did his rookie year. While he still might be a year or two away from fantasy football stardom, you should feel confident drafting Bush as high as the third round in your fantasy draft next year.

As talented as he is, the future is still very bright for Reggie Bush. He’s still very young, and by 2010, when Bush is 25, there’s a very good chance he’ll be one of the top running backs in the game, gaining some strength and continuing to thrill the league with his lightning quick speed.