USC athletic director Mike Bohn resigned from his position on Friday, effective immediately. Bohn, over the last four years, helped lead a turnaround for the Trojans, hiring head football coach Lincoln Riley and negotiating the program’s move from the Pac-12 to Big Ten beginning July 1, 2024.
Bohn leaves the USC job after previously departing from the same role at Cincinnati to take the job out West. His ability to poach Riley, the highly regarded Oklahoma coach, allowed him to put his stamp on the athletic department. He also played a significant role in USC and rival UCLA leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten.
The 62-year-old resigned due to a large number of complaints about his leadership and management practices. Multiple people at USC and at his previous stop in Cincinnati — according to reporting from Ryan Kartje of the Los Angeles Times — cited inappropriate conduct in office settings by Bohn. These sources also noted that Bohn did not show up for meetings he was supposed to attend. By all appearances, Bohn did not display a professional level of behavior.
Yet, while Bohn deserved a pink slip, it’s also clear he hired great coaches, beginning with Riley and continuing with Lindsay Gottlieb in women’s basketball and Andy Stankiewicz in baseball.
Bohn’s successes aren’t canceled out by his failures. He deserved to be terminated, but he did objectively improve the condition of USC athletics.
There’s a discussion to be had about the impact an athletic director can have on a program.
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