In game notes, USC claims its 2006 Rose Bowl loss to Texas is 'vacated'

USC’s Reggie Bush is dejected after fumbling in second quarter action against the Texas Longhorns at the national championship game at the Rose Bowl Game in Pasadena, Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2006. (Getty Images)

When USC hosts Texas on Saturday, it will mark the first time the two schools square off since the infamous 2006 Rose Bowl, when the Longhorns won the national title thanks to a Vince Young touchdown run with 19 seconds remaining and spoiled USC’s perfect season.

But according to USC, that game — the team’s only loss of the season — was vacated alongside the team’s 12 wins from that year. You see, USC had to vacate those wins amid the NCAA-Reggie Bush saga that caused the Trojans star running back to lose his Heisman Trophy. In USC’s game notes for this weekend’s game against the Longhorns, it includes the Rose Bowl loss among the vacated games from that season.

This is not a joke. USC says its official record all-time against Texas is 4-0 — not 4-1 — several times in the game notes (which you can view here).

What makes it even sillier is this supposedly vacated loss is recapped in full in the game notes, too. Bush is mentioned several times.

Say what you want about the NCAA’s practice of vacating wins (it’s silly), but vacating losses just makes absolutely no sense. That’s why official records say USC was 0-1 that season even though we all saw those wins with our own eyes.

When the NCAA announced the penalties from the investigation into Bush and former Trojans basketball star O.J. Mayo, it mentioned only vacating wins, not losses:

The findings in this case include a lack of institutional control, impermissible inducements, extra benefits and exceeding coaching staff limits.

The penalties include four years probation; a two-year football postseason ban; a one-year basketball postseason ban; vacation of regular and postseason wins for all three involved sports (football, basketball and women’s tennis); scholarship reductions for football and basketball; and recruiting restrictions for men’s basketball.

All of Bush’s statistics for that season were supposed to be vacated as well, but they are still present in USC’s record books. As is standard in game notes, USC lists its all-time rushing leaders. You’ll see a familiar name at No. 7 with his 2005 stats present with an asterisk.