The USC Trojans have a lot of places to look in their search for a new athletic director. They could look to the rock stars in the profession, people who would not be likely to leave for USC, but whom the school would have to call. Those are the candidates USC would need to force to turn down the job first. That’s part of a good search: asking the elite candidates what they think, even if it’s 99-percent likely they will say no. They should still be called.
Then there are the really good proven athletic directors at smaller schools who are ready to lead a Cadillac program such as USC.
Some athletic directors are young but are considered rising stars in the profession. USC could go for a youthful hire with fresh energy and vision, and it could all work out really well for the Trojans.
USC could also keep its hire in-house and simply promote or shift someone from another position to the big chair.
Yet, there’s another subgroup of candidates: non-traditional candidates who haven’t been athletic directors but know the ins and outs of the industry in its various components, and who would be fully prepared to take on the challenge of leading USC athletics.
Consultant Tony Altimore explored these various kinds of candidates on the recent episode of Trojan Conquest Live with hosts Tim Prangley and Rick Anaya. The show airs every Sunday at 8 p.m. Eastern and 5 p.m. Pacific.
Let’s take a look at some outside-the-box candidates: