May 11 is a notable date for USC football. How, you may ask? After all, we are currently in the middle of the offseason, and the Trojans will not play a game for more than three months.
No, today is notable not because of anything that happened on the day, but rather what it represents. Today’s date is 5/11, the numbers worn by perhaps the greatest duo in college football history.
No. 5, of course, is running back Reggie Bush. No. 11, meanwhile, is quarterback Matt Leinart. As teammates at USC from 2003-2005, they put together one of the most remarkable runs in college football history.
During that stretch, the duo led the Trojans to back-to-back national championships and came up just short of a third. USC won 34 consecutive games from 2003 through 2005, going more than 51 consecutive months without a loss.
Both players earned All-American honors and finished in the top five of the Heisman Trophy voting in both 2004 and 2005. Leinart won the award in 2004, while Bush took it home the following year. In the 2006 Rose Bowl against Texas, they became the first duo of Heisman winners to ever appear together in a game for the same team.
Both Leinart’s No. 11 and Bush’s No. 5 are retired by the Trojans. Together, they formed a legendary duo, making this a date worth celebrating for USC fans.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Celebrating USC’s historic Heisman duo on 5/11
Reporting by Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
