Bush honored at Doak Walker banquet (Photo by John Schreiber, The Daily Campus)

USC running back Reggie Bush was honored with the Doak Walker Award on Monday night.

“He was a talented athlete, and he did a lot for the game of football,” Bush said when asked how he compared to Walker as a player. “I feel like I brought some flavor to the game and made people excited to watch USC play. I feel honored to have won such a prestigious award.”

Former Texas Christian University running back Jim Swink was named the recipient of the 2005 PricewaterhouseCoopers Doak Walker Legends Award. The Legends Award was created by the Athletic Forum to honor former running backs who excelled at the collegiate level and who also distinguished themselves as a leader in their communities.

Swink looked up to Walker as a child and also feels privileged to have won this award.

“I was very aware of who he was while I was growing up,” the former All-American said. “He and John Wayne were my idols.”

Unlike Bush, Swink chose to forego a career in the NFL and pursue medical school instead. He now has an orthopedic surgery practice in Ft. Worth.

“If I had to do it all over again, it would have been more difficult to make the decision to go to medical school,” Swink said.

Bush, however, is dead-set on getting picked first for the draft.

“It is very important for me to be the No. 1 draft pick,” he said. “It’s something I’ve dreamed of for a long time, and I’m going to do everything I can to get it.”

There is much speculation about where Bush will go on Draft Day, but he said he tries not to let it get to him.

“I don’t really pay attention to rumors, because at the end of the day, nobody really knows anything,” Bush said. “Even the coaches have not reached the point where they know.”

When asked what team he would prefer to play for, Bush said, “I grew up a 49er fan, but if Houston gets the No. 1 pick, then I want to go there.”

Bush has rushed for 1,658 yards and accounted for 18 touchdowns in the 2005 season. He leads the nation averaging 218 all-purpose yards per game and 8.9 yards per carry and ranks third in the country in total rushing yards. Bush was the Heisman Trophy winner for 2005.

Swink was a consensus All-American in 1955 when he led the nation in scoring with 125 points, ranked second in rushing yards and was the runner-up for the Hesiman Trophy. The two-time Academic All-American led TCU to consecutive Cotton Bowl appearances in 1956 and 1957. Swink was inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 1977 and into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1980.

The Doak Walker Award is named after the three-time SMU All-American running back and 1948 Heisman Trophy winner. Walker was a first-round draft pick of the Detroit Lions and is also a member of both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame.