So it looks like we have some movement in the Reggie Bush/Southern California blockbuster scandal (which if involved any other team would have put them on track to death penalty a long time ago). bruin7982 was tracking the case of Lake v. Griffin in which the judge issued a recent decision (against Bush) allowing the case to be tried out in the open (instead of resolving it in confidential arbitration). There has been some coverage on this development. The LA Times called it "good news for NCAA investigators":

Lewis' ruling is good news for NCAA investigators hoping to gain access to potential evidence in the case. They want to know if Bush or USC broke college rules.

More from the San Diego Tribune re. the significance of the ruling:

The ruling is significant because it keeps the case in public court, where NCAA investigators can collect evidence to determine whether Bush and his parents received impermissible benefits from Lake while Bush played at USC in 2004 and 2005.

Note that although in the same ruling the Judge Lewis had denied Lake's motion to compel further responses from Bush and sanctioned the P with a fine of $2,720 because they had failed to engage in an "appropriate meet and confer process" according to the Tribune report the Judge is going to reconsider that part of the "tentative" ruling

On Thursday Lewis had tentatively denied a motion by Lake's attorneys to compel further responses from Bush and his parents to written discovery questions Lake had submitted to them. The questions asked such questions as whether Bush received money from Lake – and were not answered because Bush's attorneys said they were "grossly overbroad."

But today Lewis said she would reconsider that tentative ruling and would reconsider a tentative sanction of $2,730 she had issued against Lake's attorneys Thursday. She had ruled against Lake's side on this point because she believed that Lake's side had failed to properly "meet and confer" with Bush's side over discovery issues. But yesterday, Lake's attorneys, Brian Watkins and Paul Wong, said they had met and conferred with Bush's attorneys. "until we were blue in the face."

So here are the next steps (per the Tribune report linked above)

Bush is scheduled to have his deposition for the case taken Sept. 9, possibly in New Orleans, where he plays for the NFL's Saints. His parents, LaMar and Denise Griffin, are scheduled to follow on Sept. 10-11.

Ted Miller of WWL posted this take:

The NCAA case involves two aspects: 1) Can it prove any USC coach or official was aware of Bush taking cash and gifts; 2) In the absence of proving direct knowledge, will the NCAA find USC's lack of knowledge an actionable failure in itself -- the dreaded "lack of institutional control."

Our take is the second option is more likely if the NCAA is going to hit USC hard, particularly when the Bush case is paired with the strikingly similar O.J. Mayo investigation.

Miller should not dismissing the first option out of hand considering Todd McNair, the Southern Cal running back coach has been implicated in this scandal, having allegedly known about Bush's involvement with the New Era venture before Southern Cal's national championship game against Texas. [also as a quick refresher don't forget McNair is the same individual who has a record of being arrested and charged with 81 offenses involving the mistreatment of 22 pit bulls being trained on his property for dogfights while a running back for the Houston Oilers].

Where the hell is NCAA on all of this? AP reports they are "making progress":   

The NCAA is making progress in its investigation, according to a statement provided by spokeswoman Stacey Osburn.

If the NCAA determines that USC violated rules, the football program may have to forfeit victories from the 2004 and 2005 seasons and face additional penalties. The Trojans won the national championship in 2004 and lost in the BCS title game against Texas the following season.

If Bush is found retroactively ineligible, he could lose his Heisman.

I don't know about you all, but I am not holding my breath.

I don't see anything happening from the NCAA front as I am sure they are too busy keeping an eye on which UCLA recruit gets a letter from Coach Wooden next.

Go Bruins.