Tag: Jennifer Cohen

USC athletic director is ready to display Reggie Bush’s retired jersey in the Coliseum

Jennifer Cohen and Reggie Bush are clear on where everything stands.

In an interview on the Peristyle Podcast last week, USC athletic director Jennifer Cohen clarified USC’s stance on Reggie Bush, stating, “To [USC], Reggie Bush is a Heisman winner.  Any and all ways we can honor and recognize that for him, that are appropriate for him, we will do.”  Beyond the clear support that Reggie is receiving from the athletic department, this statement provides clarity for the time when Trojan fans will finally see the No. 5 jersey back where it belongs.

Bush steadfastly maintains that he earned his Heisman Trophy on the field, a notion supported by anyone who witnessed his remarkable performances as one of college football’s greatest running backs. The peristyle end of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where the Trojans play their home games, proudly displays the jersey numbers of six of USC’s Heisman Trophy winners. However, two notable absences stand out: Caleb Williams, the 2022 Heisman winner, and Bush, whose No. 5 jersey was removed after the NCAA ruled that he and his family received improper benefits from a marketing agent while he played at USC.

It is worth noting that the NCAA rule under which Bush was penalized has since been deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, adjudicating that it is a violation of a citizen’s rights to prevent said citizen from profiting by marketing his or her own name, image, and likeness. Therefore, if the rule is illegal now, it was also illegal then, rendering the case against Bush questionable at best.

Additionally, the entire NCAA investigation was put under a microscope by Judge Frederick Shaller during the related case of Todd McNair’s alleged involvement. Shaller called the NCAA investigation “malicious” and explained that the NCAA infractions report “contained material false statements…”  The NCAA spent 10 years delaying the trial with appeals, but finally settled out of court with McNair for an undisclosed amount.

In 2021 the NCAA remained in character and upheld that Bush was ineligible even though the rules have now changed, in spite of the Supreme Court ruling. The NCAA will not reinstate his 2005 season records. In turn, the Heisman Trust is hiding behind a rule that makes Reggie ineligible for the award if his playing records are vacated.

Last year during the spring game, rumors circulated that Reggie’s jersey would be unveiled during the season alongside Caleb Williams’ jersey when a blank tarp was displayed as a placeholder among the other Heisman winners. Reggie has since clarified that he doesn’t want his number retired at the Coliseum until his Heisman Trophy, which he earned while capping a 34-game win streak at USC, is returned. So as Cohen said, No. 5 will be proudly displayed when Reggie has his trophy returned.  Reggie remains in litigation for a defamation suit against the NCAA.

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USC AD Jennifer Cohen discusses NIL as Trojans figure out long-term plans

Cohen’s public remarks matter a lot less than what she does behind the scenes.

The NIL realm is where USC has been absorbing a lot of hits in college football. Ohio State and Oregon, both Big Ten competitors, are cleaning up thanks to robust NIL efforts and a clear willingness to pay for top recruits and transfer portal prospects. The Buckeyes and Ducks are fully investing in their programs, and it is paying off in more ways than one.

USC is playing catch-up. The Trojans live in the Los Angeles market, the second-biggest metopolitan area in the United States. There is certainly ample accumulated wealth in the area. USC Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen is a prodigious fundraiser. She knows she needs to unlock the resources in Southern California in order to enable USC football to thrive. She recently went on The Peristyle podcast to discuss the NIL space and where USC stands within it.

Some fans might be alarmed and/or disappointed that Cohen painted a relatively positive picture of the NIL situation, but one should realize that Cohen is not going to publicly eviscerate the efforts being made by the people organizing USC’s main collectives. What matters is not what she says, but what she privately does behind the scenes to improve the success rate of the NIL operation. That’s what matters most. The next really big test of USC’s NIL strength will come in the spring transfer portal window, when USC will need a 2024 version of Bear Alexander, the 2023 spring portal pickup who improved the Trojans’ defensive line.

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USC Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen is aware that the Trojans are losing to Oregon in NIL

Jen Cohen knows the score. USC is losing.

We can all debate whether Lincoln Riley and USC are losing to Oregon in the recruiting game because Dan Lanning is doing a better job than Riley. It might not be a matter of one coach doing more than another. It could be that one school’s NIL setup is better than the other’s, and that infrastructure — not coaching acumen — is the true driver of Oregon’s wins over USC on the trail. Yet, after the Ryan Pellum flip and other big recruiting (and transfer portal) conquests for Oregon in the latest cycle, there is zero question that Oregon recruiting and portal success under Dan Lanning has eclipsed Lincoln Riley’s body of work at USC. Lanning and Riley have both been at their current schools for two years. In those two years, Lanning has greatly outclassed Riley.

This should be highly concerning to USC insiders. If USC could get the caliber of athlete Oregon is pulling in, the Trojans would be national championship contenders (now that they have good defensive coaches). However, Lanning and Oregon are getting better players.

Something needs to be done.

USC Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen is aware of this.

Cohen, who used to be Washington’s athletic director, certainly relishes defeating Oregon. She knows how important it is to beat Oregon. Now at USC, her desire to thwart the Ducks has not dimmed.

It is no idle coincidence that after another day of Oregon superiority to USC in football recruiting, Cohen put out a fundraising appeal for the Trojans’ main NIL collective, the House of Victory:

Much more has to be done for USC to catch up to Oregon in recruiting. This is, at least, a start.

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USC AD Jennifer Cohen suggests Trojans’ DC is coaching in a conference title game

Cohen told the Los Angeles Times that conference championship games still have to be played. That seems like a hint.

Public figures generally don’t say things unless they have a specific purpose in mind. Why say something very specific if it doesn’t offer at least some indication of a stated goal or an operational approach to an urgent matter?

USC Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen made a specific statement to Ryan Kartje of the Los Angeles Times on Thursday. She didn’t have to make the statement, but she obviously wanted to. It might indicate where USC’s defensive coordinator search is turning:

“But what I would say is the process is a good healthy combination of urgency with diligence. Ultimately we will get the right person for this job. And that’s the most important thing. You want to act with urgency. You want to make sure that you’re going through your candidates and doing your process for that, but you also want to be diligent enough in this landscape that we’re in where there’s so much movement and change — and that’s just starting, the domino effects. We still have conference championship games to be played. So there’s going to be more change and churn in the whole landscape of college football,” Cohen said.

A reasonable person would interpret that statement as meaning USC is considering at least one coach, if not more, who is coaching this weekend in a conference title game. We’ll talk more about this as the weekend unfolds here at Trojans Wire.

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Defensive coordinator search is Jennifer Cohen’s moment of truth, not just Lincoln Riley’s

We all have to remember one thing about Jennifer Cohen.

Of course Lincoln Riley is the man of the hour at USC. He has to agree to the new defensive coordinator the school will hire. He will be the boss of his new coordinator. He will almost surely allow his coordinator to call the shots on defense, but this is Lincoln Riley’s program. The coordinator answers to the head coach, not the other way around. Riley’s reputation is most squarely on the line in this hire. We all know that. Yet, let’s not forget that another person at USC has a lot riding on this decision.

Jennifer Cohen, as much as Riley himself, needs to land the right defensive coordinator to replace Alex Grinch.

It is well worth remembering that at Washington, Cohen hired Jimmy Lake as Chris Petersen’s replacement, but failed to make sure Lake hired a good offensive coordinator. Lake’s pick of John Donovan turned into a disaster.

Cohen made a mistake there, but that mistake is valuable experience. It should increase the odds that Cohen won’t let this defensive coordinator search turn into a failed venture. Cohen will insist on quality at the position and will make sure Riley doesn’t settle for mediocrity the way he did with Grinch (a person Cohen didn’t hire since she was at Washington two years ago).

At least, that’s what we hope will happen.

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USC YouTube show discusses Jennifer Cohen’s arrival as new USC AD

At the @VoiceOfCFB, @Tim_Prangley @LBCTrojan and @TJAltimore explored what Jennifer Cohen brings to #USC athletics.

Jennifer Cohen is the new athletic director at USC. The Trojans gained Lincoln Riley and a ticket to the Big Ten Conference under previous athletic director Mike Bohn, but many people will tell you that Brandon Sosna was the real mover on the Riley front. Regardless of what Bohn did or didn’t go in those realms, however, his conduct and behavior in the workplace were clearly not professional. A lot of people in the athletic department were unsettled by the way Bohn went about his business, and that might be putting it mildly.

USC needed a true professional, someone fully respected by everyone in the world of college sports administration. Jennifer Cohen, previously the athletic director at the University of Washington, fully meets that description. USC’s internal athletic department employees and staffers, who were uncomfortable in Mike Bohn’s presence, received a boss they can feel good about. They will be happy to work for Jennifer Cohen and advance the mission of USC athletics.

There’s a lot more to unpack about Carol Folt’s hire of Jennifer Cohen. The USC YouTube channel at The Voice of College Football is the place to go for more insights on this big story.

Tim Prangley, Rick Anaya, and Tony Altimore — who will bring you the USC football postgame show this upcoming Saturday after the Trojans’ opener against San Jose State — put together a special “instant reaction” show and talked about what Jennifer Cohen brings to USC athletics:

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Trojans Wired podcast discusses the arrival of Jennifer Cohen as USC AD

Let’s talk about Jennifer Cohen on our new podcast.

Jennifer Cohen moved from one Pac-12 school to another. She also moved from one 2024 Big Ten school to another. In one of the more fascinating athletic director movements in recent memory, an athletic director who watched one Pac-12 school move to the Big Ten decided to join that very school 13 months after that move was announced.

When USC revealed its move to the Big Ten in the summer of 2022, Mike Bohn was the athletic director in Los Angeles. Nearly one year later, Bohn was out. USC engaged in a multi-month search for its new athletic director. Cohen, whose Washington program packed its bags for the Big Ten mere weeks ago, decided she would rather preside over a Pac-12 to Big Ten transition in Southern California instead of Seattle. One could say this is mainly because USC will get a full revenue share in the Big Ten while Washington will not (in the first several years of its Big Ten existence). Yet, the calculus might be more complicated than that.

On our new podcast, we discuss the arrival of Jennifer Cohen at USC and what her tenure means for Trojan athletics. Ian Hest produced the show.

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Twitter reaction to Jennifer Cohen becoming USC’s new athletic director

National commentators were highly impressed by #USC’s move. See what people had to say about Jennifer Cohen.

Jennifer Cohen was preparing to move Washington athletics from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten. She will still move a college sports athletic program from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten, but now she will do that in Los Angeles, not Seattle.

Cohen was named USC’s new athletic director on Monday, replacing Mike Bohn.

Ducks Wire’s Zachary Neel noted that “Cohen was the standing AD for the Washington Huskies since 2016 and is a current member of the College Football Playoff selection committee. The most notable success that Cohen has had at Washington is the hiring of football head coach Kalen DeBoer, who led the team to a 11-2 record in 2022.

“At USC, Cohen becomes the first female athletic director in school history.”

See how various journalists, commentators and fans reacted on social media to Cohen’s arrival at USC:

Southern California names Jennifer Cohen as next athletic director

The University of Southern California named their new athletic director on Monday.

The University of Southern California’s search for the school’s next athletic director ended on Monday afternoon.

Carol Folt, the President of the University of Southern California, named Jennifer Cohen as the university’s 10th athletic director. She replaces Mike Bohn, who resigned from his post due to health-related issues. Cohen is also the first woman ever to be named athletic director at USC.

Cohen comes to USC from the University of Washington, where she has served as the athletic director since May 25, 2016. Before seven years as the university’s athletic director, Cohen spent 17 years as part of the athletic department, with most of her time overseeing fundraising. She also spent time at Pacific Luthern, the University of Puget Sound, and Texas Tech in her administrative career.

During her time in Seattle, Huskies athletics saw success both on the field and in the classroom, including recording a school-record NCAA Graduation Success Rate of 92 in 2021. She also oversaw the hiring of multiple coaches, including head football coach Kalen DeBoer, who led the football program to an 11-2 season in his first year as head coach. Overall, the University of Washington won 19 Pac-12 championships during her seven-year tenure.

Notably, the Acaradia, California native, is also a member of the College Football Playoff Committee and a member of the National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches.

Cohen comes to USC as the university finds itself in a similar spot to the one she was in at the University of Washington. The USC athletic department is in its final year as a member of the Pac-12 as the university, along with the University of Oregon, the University of Washington, and the University of California, Los Angeles, will move to the Big Ten starting next July.

“I have long admired the Trojan spirit and the USC community’s commitment to always Fight On with integrity and absolute dedication in pursuit of excellence both on and off the field,” Cohen said in a press release. “It is an honor of a lifetime to come back to Southern California to serve as USC’s director of athletics and officially join the Trojan Family. I am excited to help realize President Folt’s moonshot plan to reimagine USC Athletics, ensuring student-athletes from all of our 21 teams have the facilities and resources they need to succeed. USC is a national powerhouse in every measure of college athletics, and I look forward to honoring the Trojan heritage while working alongside the incredible USC Athletics team as we embrace both the opportunities and challenges of this complex moment.”

Cohen will begin her tenure as USC’s athletic director on Tuesday.

REPORT: Jennifer Cohen to leave Washington and become USC’s new athletic director

Imagine writing this sentence in 2021: “The AD at Washington left to join USC, moving from one Big Ten school to another.”

USC has reportedly found its new athletic director to replace Mike Bohn.

The Trojans went to another Big Ten school for their hire: the University of Washington.

It’s a reality none of us ever could have imagined a few years ago, but it’s real. The Seattle Times and multiple other news outlets are reporting that Washington Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen will leave Montlake and move to Los Angeles to become USC’s new athletic director.

The move contains a few obvious components which make sense. First, Cohen was already preparing for Washington’s transition to the Big Ten Conference. Taking the USC job means she won’t be behind on the logistical components of the move. She has already been discussing them, but in a Washington-specific context. She can now take on those challenges from a position of responsibility at another school which is moving from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten.

The other reason this is a natural fit for USC is that Cohen will be able to speak up for USC in Big Ten circles, making sure Trojan athletes in various sports get reasonable travel accommodations. Cohen was preparing to do this on behalf of Washington Husky athletes; now she’ll do this for the Trojans.

This move will also ensure that USC and Washington and the other Pac-12 schools moving to the Big Ten play each other as much as possible to limit long-distance travel.

We’ll have more on this story as it develops.

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