Bush and Carroll on same field for first time since USC days

Two former USC football icons reunited today in one of the biggest venues football has to offer, as the Seattle Seahawks’ first-year coach Pete Carroll headed to the New Orleans Superdome to take on the Saints and their star running back Reggie Bush.

Though both Carroll and Bush’s reputations have been tarnished at USC — Bush for the sanctions caused by his acceptance of money and gifts as a student-athlete and Carroll for leaving the team in the midst of such controversy and turmoil — neither the coah nor his former player have any hard feelings toward each other regarding their contraversial past.

“Not at all, because what we built while we were there together, we built a relationship, a brotherhood so to speak,” Bush said earlier this week before the two teams matched up. “Coach Carroll is a guy I’ll always have the highest regard for and love and respect . . . No matter what happened at the end of the day, nobody can take anything away from us.”

Bush has not let his shaky history with his alma mater get in the way of his performance in the NFL, as he has quickly become a fan favorite in New Orleans and managed to raise the Lombardi trophy over his head in just his fourth season in the league.

“The things that they’re doing with him are the things we tried to do with him in college. You try to get him in space. You try to get him in matchups. You try to utilize his great speed and ability to bust plays and games wide open,” Carroll said of his former player in a conference call. “They totally understand it.”

Bush did admit he wanted nothing more than to beat Carroll and his new team — and though he did not play in today’s game, he got his wish. The Saints defeated the Seahawks, 34-19.