4:35 p.m.: Got an interesting email the other day from Jason Cole and Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com sports. Their question: Would I, as a Heisman Trophy voter, agree with stripping Reggie Bush of his Heisman if Bush was found to be ineligible by the NCAA for the 2005 season in which he won the award.

My answer was yes. I think we should have higher standards for national awards like this. I think the Heisman should and does stand for something bigger than scoring touchdowns. I think it's absolutely okay to charge every winner with upholding the honor of this award their entire lives. And if they weren't even eligible when they won it, that's more than fair game.

But I also replied that this might be a better way to handle it: Have the Heisman Foundation folks send an email to every Heisman voter (we're all on electronic mail list now and we vote electronically) asking them to vote for one of the following:

1. Bush should be able to keep the Heisman.
2. Bush should have his Heisman stripped and the award should be vacated for that year.
3. Bush should have his Heisman stripped and it should go to the runner-up that year, in this case Vince Young of Texas.

I would vote No. 2. My only problem with handing it to the runner-up is that, in any given year, the runner-up may not have deserved the Heisman that year and just ended up second.

In any case, it remains to be seen what the NCAA does with USC — and with Bush.

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