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USC Morning Buzz: Don’t Worry It’s Only Money

Jen Cohen has a $1 million buyout in her Washington contract, which shows you how much Carol Folt wanted her.

That would have been a poison pill for some universities but not USC, where money is not an issue when it really wants something. I’ve heard USC severed ties with Mike Bohn on pretty reasonable terms but there’s still a lot of money being thrown around for athletic administration the past few months, including fees to Sandy Barbour and Co. in their advisory roles.

You know who hired Cohen into the Washington athletic dept. in 1998? Barbara Hedges, who is in the USC Hall of Fame for her years of service to Heritage Hall (1973-91) until she became athletic director at Washington (1991-2004).

  • Here’s an interview I did with Seattle sports-talk legend Dave “Softy” Mahler on USC’s hiring of Jen Cohen. Listen here.
  • Cohen starts at USC today. Did Washington get two weeks notice?
  • This is what you say when you know you are not getting the USC job.

64 thoughts on “USC Morning Buzz: Don’t Worry It’s Only Money”

    2. Alex Grinch and the other idiot Donte Williams make over a million dollars a year and they can’t be trusted to run the Ladies of Troy defense.

      ‘Ol Mule Shoe has to babysit those clowns. Why keep this defensive coaching staff around if you have to babysit them?

      When had you ever heard a USC head coach come out and say thst he was personally going to oversee and take a more hands on approach with the defense? Pete Carroll pretty much ran his defenses, but he was a defensive guy to begin with, that was his thing. ‘Ol Mule Shoe is an offense minded coach and yet he has to look after Grinch because Grinch is clueless.

      Just hire a legit defensive coordinator and be done with it. Having to babysit Alex Grinch, how embarrassing, that clown has no shame.

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    3. Everyone’s imposter gotroll22 uses the same plea that his uncle Larry Craig used when he got caught playing footsie and soliciting sex with an undercover cop in a mens bathroom, but it ain’t working, he’s gay.

      gotroll22 outs himself everytime he pretends to be someone else and claims to be gay, that’s his way of coming out of the closet.

      LOL!

      gotroll22 takes after his uncle Larry Craig and he looks like him too

      Liked by 1 person

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      2. Gabby aka The Guy who posts as TebowObama aka So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young's avatar Gabby aka The Guy who posts as TebowObama aka So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young says:

        Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama The Guy who posts as So Cal’s Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young uses the same plea that Lizzo used when she was caught fat shaming and abusing the help .

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  3. Some of us were making fun of ol’ Jen but she makes upwards of $1 million per
    About 5-10 times more than most professionals
    So who is getting the last laugh

    And “lawyer-speak” is written all over these “official announcements’
    as the Florida St piece evidences

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      1. Apr 15, 2019
        SEATTLE — Since the University of Washington promoted Jen Cohen to athletic director in May 2016, she has presided over a mostly thriving operation. The football team is winning, the men’s basketball team just made it back to the NCAA Tournament, there has been postseason success across many other sports, the school’s new Adidas apparel partnership commences in July and department revenues are catching up to expenses at a faster rate than originally projected.

        If there has been any negative press surrounding Cohen’s tenure, it was that the school wasn’t paying her enough. In fact, a Seattle Times headline published last spring posited that Cohen, the only female AD in the Pac-12, might be “the best bargain in college sports,” citing her original five-year contract that paid her $520,000 annually. That figure was the lowest among Power Five athletic directors when comparing guaranteed compensation to departmental expenses, a study published last year by AthleticDirectorU.com showed.

        So apparent was this perceived inequity that UW president Ana Mari Cauce told the Times it was “unquestionably time to look at a correction” to Cohen’s salary, stating plainly that she would receive a raise. And she did — in August. The school just didn’t announce it.
        “I wouldn’t be the person that would ever think it would be cool to announce my contract,” Cohen told The Athletic. “That’s not how we work around here. That’s just not my thing. I’m still actually getting used to the fact that I’m supposed to be some visible leader. This place is about these other people, and these kids and fans. It’s not about me. It’s never going to be.”

        She is going to be in charge for the foreseeable future, according to a copy of her new agreement obtained by The Athletic. On top of a three-year extension, through June 2024, with an additional two-year option, Cohen received a raise in base salary from $460,000 per year to $750,000, plus an increased annual retention bonus of $75,000, payable upon vesting in 2021 (and again in 2024, should she remain the AD). Cohen also will be eligible for an annual merit raise of no less than 2 percent, at the president’s discretion, in addition to a maximum of $100,000 per year in performance incentives (such as academic and on-field achievement).

        Her new total annual compensation of $825,000 (retention bonus included) should put her in the top half of athletic director pay at public schools in the Pac-12. But she knows there are more important money matters at hand, such as the long-term financial health of the department, the cash influx via the Adidas deal and the push to fund a new facility to house the men’s and women’s basketball programs.
        Cohen discussed these topics and more — including what to expect from the Huskies’ new football uniforms, and when you might see beer and wine sold at concession stands — during a recent sit-down in her office. Questions and responses have been edited for length and clarity.
        Shortly after taking the AD job, Cohen presented the Board of Regents with some not-so-great news: The department projected a $14.8 million deficit for the 2016 fiscal year (though it wound up much lower than that). At the same time, the school unveiled a financial stability plan that included a five-year outlook and identified several paths to solvency. Significant progress has been made, with the success of the football team leading to increased ticket sales and a new fundraising campaign bringing in more donations.

        Still, the department projects about a $4 million deficit for the soon-to-be-completed 2019 fiscal year — roughly $128 million in revenues and $112 million in expenses, with debt service payments accounting for the shortfall — which Cohen will detail in her annual meeting with the regents next month. That’s lower than the original projected deficit of roughly $8 million for this fiscal year — the financial stability plan indicated at the time that the 2019 deficit could be lower than that, depending on how much new revenue could be identified — but there still is work to do to pull UW into the black on a regular basis
        Cohen recently signed a new contract that runs through June 2024 and provides a raise.

        The school’s 10-year, $119 million apparel deal with Adidas, commencing July 1, will help. The agreement guarantees the school $4.5 million in cash in the first year (that number increases to $5.25 million by the final year of the deal), plus a $3 million signing bonus due July 31, and a separate marketing budget of $1.25 million.

        Do you feel good about the amount of the deficit, given where you were a few years ago?

        Well, one, we have a savings account to cover it, and that’s why you save, so that when you have years that are unusual, like this year without the Don James Center revenue, you have a plan. If we didn’t have a financial plan around it or if we didn’t know it was coming, I wouldn’t feel good about it at all. But this is something that’s been transparent and visible since we’ve all been in our jobs for the last three years. I don’t think any of us ever want to run an operation that ever has to worry about deficits, but given where we were before, and given what our future revenues and expenses look like, I think we’re kind of in the best place we can be based on where we are right now as an athletic program and as a conference.

        (Note: Payments and contributions for seats in the Don James Center, the premium seating structure on Husky Stadium’s south side, are made over a two-year period, and guarantee a seat for a five-year period. So, revenue from those seats — which exceeded $11 million in the 2017 and 2018 fiscal years — only comes in two out of every five years, and will be counted as zero in 2019, 2020 and 2021.)

        What have you been able to do right to close that deficit?

        It’s not so much about what we’ve done right; it’s more about what our alums and fans have done well. The real game-changing factor for us has been and always will be fan support and donor support. A lot of our other revenues are fixed and they’re guaranteed for a certain period of time, and there’s no fluctuation to improve those situations. So fans and donors have such a huge impact on us that way.
        We made financial stability the top priority for our department when we first got hired, and to this day, at all of our all-staff meetings, every employee at the University of Washington athletic department is getting a financial update. That’s because it’s that important. So painting the picture for everybody to understand the role they play in both revenues and expenses, to the bottom line, is important because we all have to treat the budget here like it’s our own money, and how would we spend it and how would we invest it if it were ours? That’s the mindset that we’re trying to develop.

        With the Adidas deal, how big of a priority was it to secure as much cash compensation as possible?

        It was a priority. When we built our financial stability plan, we had several areas that we indicated to the regents and the president where we can improve our financial stability. Some was in ticketing, some was in donations. We started a new fundraising campaign, which has been part of the success of our budget, which is completely and directly tied to the success of our teams. But the other one was, hey, we have this apparel deal coming up. You have one shot to negotiate it, and then you’re in that revenue stream for a pretty significant period of time.
        So we knew that was going to be a great opportunity for us, and ensuring that we got the value that we thought the university deserved was a big part of that. It wasn’t the only factor in why we went with Adidas. We really just loved the fact that Adidas was so hungry for our business, and they were so nimble, and (have) less schools, and (they’re) down the road, and wanted us to win, and were really creative. But they also backed all of that up with cash, and a significant increase in product, and something that we’ve never had before, which is a marketing budget. That’s so important for us right now.
        There are many facets of the deal with Adidas. The most important for the department is the financial aspect, but Cohen knows the uniform aspect is of great interest to the fans and athletes (and recruits).

        How do you think you might use those marketing dollars?
        We’re having fun thinking about that. It’s a partnership. Adidas wants to feel good about how we’re spending the money, too. I think in Year One, you’re going to see it more in how we launch the partnership. There will be a lot of investment made in just having Adidas create a relationship with not just our student-athletes and coaches and staff, but our fans and students as a whole and our campus community. So I think some of the spend will be in that area. But down the road, there are a lot of options. There could be things for a lot of our different teams, and there could be ways we can think about how do we help basketball and football have more of a national presence? It’s not limited. I do think some of it will be other ways Adidas can engage with the overall student body and community, which we absolutely think is awesome and think is worth any investment that we can make.

        How much is recruiting a consideration in the discussion about uniforms?

        I think it’s always a consideration. There are a lot of factors that impact recruiting, and people are probably the most important thing, more so than the uniform. But I think we all recognize how important our students’ reactions are to the uniforms they wear, and how kids react to that when they’re visiting. So that definitely influences discussions around design.
        We have some folks from the recruiting department involved in some of the things we’re doing with product design. I think that’s really important. I also think we have a really strong brand. We want to make sure our brand continues to have awareness. You have to have some discipline around that, too. Probably the biggest challenge in uniform design for us is more that there hasn’t been one standard uniform, even though public perception is that there has been. And I really credit Adidas. They really studied this. They looked back at all different eras of our uniforms. They looked at times when we were most successful. They read message boards from fans. They really do care about how everybody is going to respond to this.
        What you find is that there isn’t one standard that you could go “back to” that wouldn’t look like a throwback jersey. So I think what they’re trying to do is really take the best of who we are, but also make sure that we’re forward-thinking and create something that feels very UW. That’s the goal.

        How close are the uniform designs to being finished?

        They’re pretty close. Our transition is going to be this summer, and we’ve got a football game not that long from now and all of our fall sports are starting up in August and transitioning in July. So they’re really close. They’re just doing some fine-tuning.

        Is there a date on the calendar to unveil the new uniforms?

        We’re really trying to figure out the best way to roll this out to engage all these stakeholders in a really fun and exciting way, and around that with how the summer calendar works and how fall ball starts. I can’t say that we really have a specific date. Obviously, the partnership starts in July, and we’re going to want to do something around that. But you could potentially — and I’m not saying this is where we’re going to end up — but you could potentially see a phasing of a rollout, and an ongoing rollout, throughout the summertime leading up to the season, and you could see some big stuff even happening once conference play starts for football.
        It doesn’t have to be one date. It can be a continuous series of things. I think based on the timing, that’s kind of what we’re thinking, but we haven’t finalized those plans yet. They’re knee-deep in those planning meetings right now.

        Since this is Adidas we’re talking about: Are the athletes going to get Yeezys?

        We haven’t fully decided everything the athletes are going to get, but the athletes are definitely going to get hooked up. The amount of product allotment we have, comparable to the old deal, there’s a significant increase for our student-athletes. There’s fun in the element of surprise for our students, too.

        Cohen in general has good things to say about the game-day atmosphere at Husky Stadium, but she noted that attendance in the second half of games could be better.

        What’s your take on the overall game-day atmosphere at Husky Stadium?

        I think that one, our Husky fans showed at the Rose Bowl that the strong tradition of fan support and their desire to see a championship program is alive and well. I think that level of success and that experience and the tradition of it was really inspiring for everybody.
        We have made great progress in Husky Stadium. Our attendance numbers are extremely positive, and they’re really trend-setting in the conference and on the West Coast, and I think that’s the really positive thing to celebrate. I think the energy in Husky Stadium can and should be bigger and better. And I think there are a number of factors that are in play. I don’t think everything is just about the new, modern version of the game-day experience, like what’s on the video board and who’s playing what music.
        We seem to beat people a lot in Husky Stadium, so several of our games, by halftime, we already have a lead. So getting people to come back in the stadium for the second half has really been an issue for a long time. I think the fact that we let people leave at halftime is contributing to a game-day experience that could be better. I think a lot of people wanted to blame it on The Zone, so we closed that, and I think everybody is going, “Oh, yeah, OK, I get your point now. It wasn’t really The Zone.” We’ve always said it wasn’t The Zone because the numbers don’t add up.
        The numbers are tracked, and the numbers are in the thousands — sometimes over 10,000 people leave at halftime — and then maybe you’re lucky if half of them come back, and when they come back, they don’t come back until the end of the third quarter. The best game-day experience is a full venue, where people are engaged for four quarters, and the fans are championship fans, which we have. So we’ve got to do a better job, (but) we’re not going to change the policy this year going into the season.
        Personally, I think we need to learn from the model that we’ve seen in Hec Ed, with some pretty special engagement between the athletes and coaches and Dawg Pack in the basketball arena. Even our longtime season-ticket holders in basketball seem to follow suit to the students. This is a university. It’s the students’ university. So one of our hopes going into next year — and it’s really early to talk about game day next year because we’re in the middle of an academic year — is that we do a better job as an athletic department engaging with our students as it relates to football.
        I’m the most empathetic person to our fans. I’m one of those people. My father is one of those people. But at some point in time, we have to accept the modern version of college football. And we have a choice. If we want to take this program that is really, really, really good, and is so close to being this elite program that competes with these elite schools — every one of those schools that we’re trying to beat in those bowl games has a fan base that’s rabid, no matter what time their games are played, no matter when they’re announced. And I get the obstacles are different in a big city. But I also get that people want to win here, and they’ve always helped us win. They’re the only reason why we win, is because we have this support.
        So we’ve got to figure out a way to get re-inspired and give the fans ownership of their experience. We’ve got to do a better job of that as an athletic department. I think this department is on the verge of something really special here, and we can’t spend our energy focusing on the things we can’t control. We have to put the foot on the pedal right now and blow past everybody else in this league. We can do that right now, and the only way we can do that is everybody being on board.

        Do you envision a day when beer and wine will be available at concession stands throughout Husky Stadium?

        We’re testing that out in different venues first. We have a family section in baseball, but everything else is beer and wine in the stands. People are really taking advantage of that and enjoying it. It’s a great date for people. It’s still a great family thing to do. And then we’re doing the same in softball.
        There’s been a working group on this for the last couple years, and they built a phased approach to consider what we would do long-term with football. So we’re doing baseball and softball this year. This summer, we have the (WNBA’s) Seattle Storm in Hec Ed, and the facility is already permitted for the Storm, so we’ll see how that goes. If it goes well, it’s very likely that we will be seeing beer and wine in the arena for all of our arena sports next year.
        Football is a little different. There are a lot of rules around tailgating and the parking lots as it relates to beer and wine being sold. Before we can expand, what’s important to me is that the pregame tailgating experience is always preserved for Husky fans. So there’s a little bit more work to do. Do I think there might be a time potentially? Yes. Is it going to be in the next year? No. Two or three years down the road? Something, or at least an expansion of it.

        In your financial stability plan, you mentioned the possibility of hosting a couple of non-athletic events at Husky Stadium each year. Has there been any progress on that?

        We’re still working on a very expensive transportation management plan that we’re trying to get approved through the city. We’re working on it. We think it would be great for the community. In the plan, we’re not asking for 20 more events in Husky Stadium. We’re asking for a handful of other days we could do something really cool for the community, and maybe generate some revenue, too.
        And also some relief on the way that we’re managing all the other busing systems that are coming in because we’re going to continue to have light rail. Light rail is going to extend eventually. The bus system is so important for people, though. It doesn’t always serve a big population, but we recognize that service is important for a lot of people.
        I’ve heard from a few different people about the Federal Way park-and-ride stop being eliminated last year.
        We brought that back for next year, but you have to be able to buy into it for the whole season.

        Just to be clear: When you’re talking about non-athletic events at Husky Stadium, you mean something like a concert, correct?

        Yes. It’s an amazing venue, and to be able to showcase not only athletics but the university to a broader group would be great. We get contacted all the time about concerts, and we’ve been really close on some deals, but when they have to fund transportation requirements that are so massively expensive, they don’t want to come here. They can go downtown to one of the two venues that don’t have those same requirements. So we lose out on those opportunities right now.
        Where are you at in the planning process for a new basketball facility?
        We’ve already determined that at least for the next several years, we need to 100 percent invest in a practice facility and really, most importantly, a home for men’s and women’s basketball. In addition to that, because of the location that we want to build in, which is where the pool footprint is, we have a weight room right there that services all of our other student-athletes that aren’t football. Right now (for sports besides football), the footprint is there’s a weight room, nutrition is someplace else, the training room is someplace else, our wellness director is someplace else.
        So we’ve made a lot of investments in these areas, but we don’t have the physical synergy of those spaces. So in the perfect world, our project will be inclusive of both, that we would build this practice facility for men’s and women’s basketball that would be their home — coaches’ offices, recruiting lounge space, student-athlete spaces and, most important, 24/7 private courts for the men and women.
        We’ve started to stabilize the budget enough for campus to be open-minded for us to say, “Hey, if we can keep stabilizing our budget, can we go out and raise some money?” We have to raise all the money. We can’t take it from operating budget. We can’t take it from reserves right now. When Scott (Woodward) was here, they evaluated 10 different designs, and none of them were affordable. We don’t want to go on the cheap. We want to promote our brand and we want to serve students and be efficient for kids, but we also have to be realistic about how much money we can raise. This is the most progress that we’ve made, and we really didn’t have the luxury to make any progress on this until we got ourselves stabilized.

        We’ve had a few donors step up and say they know how important it is to us and Coach (Mike) Hopkins, so we already have $25 million in commitments to a project that we don’t even have scope or price for, which is a real testament to how important our donor base realizes this project is. I feel really good that we’ll have a lot more clarity by the middle part of fall. Right now, it’s just really waiting to see what they think the price would be.

        From a resource standpoint, is there anything the football program doesn’t have right now that it would need to take that next step?

        I think our biggest challenge in football is fan support. I think it’s recruiting, and it’s the image around this place, comparable to the schools we’re recruiting against now. The facilities are phenomenal. The staff is phenomenal. We’re always doing stuff with football. Chris (Petersen) is super innovative. He’s looking at a lot of different things, whether that’s sleep pods or a sauna in the training room because there’s recovery data that says it works, whether that’s software to project injury before it happens — there’s significant investments happening all the time. All those things are really important.
        But where we are right now, to continue to do that and invest in that assistant coaching pool that continues to grow, to continue to invest in (Petersen), and to really, really tell the quality of the recruits that we’re recruiting, “This place is going to be a phenomenal experience for you, and we’re serious about it,” the fan support and people being in the stadium and showing up, I think, is the biggest factor for how we take this program to that consistent elite level. We’re right there. We’ve been a top-10 program, which is really hard. His consistency is what’s really special. But we have to match that consistency. We cannot lose energy, and we cannot lose focus, and we can’t lose the investment in it.

        Have the expectations changed for what the football program should accomplish each season?

        I don’t know if I should say what “should or shouldn’t” — but have the expectations changed? Yes. I think any time you win, and you go to a CFP, a Fiesta Bowl and a Rose Bowl — these are all top-10-level finishes. I think that’s great. I think expecting that’s where we’re going to be is great.

        Do I think that’s always easy to maintain that? Do I think there are going to be cyclical years?

        Do I think there are factors that contribute to our success whether or not you have the right plan? Yes.
        I mean, it doesn’t matter whether it’s sports or business. Sometimes we have the perfect plan, and sometimes it doesn’t get executed the way we want. That’s life. I get the difference between that. I think the entire world’s expectations have changed. Has it impacted us? Yes. Does it impact the pressure on these kids? Absolutely. Does social media have a strong influence on how everybody feels about you and everybody’s moods every day? Just people’s moods about something every day are, like, completely influencing people’s perception of what we’re doing here. That’s just a completely different world that we didn’t live in 10 years ago. So, yeah, everything has changed. Expectations have changed. How people want to view how we’re doing has changed.

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  6. Few in L.A. are more ino the ‘concept’ of women than I
    That said, I can be he worst sexist-
    Like with ‘ol’ Jen, already knocking her teasing about “fat”

    In contrast, with Bon-Bon’ nobody talked about what great eyes he had

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    1. Well, no one ever claimed Mike was good looking. Yesterday a couple tried to make it about her.

      She really could pass for Chip Kelly in a dress. At the very least, his sister.

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    2. Not true, John–
      Last January, while Mike and I were ‘wrestling’ at his house, I paused to tell him he had beautiful eyes…
      #That’sAsMuchOfTheStoryAsICareToTell…

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    3. Bohn was a semi pro administrator and had Sosna to pick up where he dropped off. Jen is a professional administrator, straight shooter, honest, and quite capable.

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    1. 247 Sports lists him as a 2026 commit. Sounds good; hope it sticks. As Scott has reminded us from time-to-time in the past, there’s often a slip between the cup and the lip (I’m pretty sure those are Scott’s exact words).

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  8. Hey big girls need love too. Wolfe how much is her yearly salary? Does her perks come with a mansion like Carroll Burnett Folt. Can we give her the benefit of the doubt, she won’t be a sadiddy egotistical ass wipe like Boner.

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    1. I do hope she makes us eat our words, which are all in jest anyway.

      At the end of the day, it’s all about wins WITH NO SCANDALS. Good young men who treat their girlfriends & teammates with respect, maybe spend some time with the community immediately surrounding USC and, of course, GRADUATION RATES!

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  10. USC signed the #1 QB prospect for 2026. I can almost read the Wolf take on it now – “USC signed another top QB, but why cant they sign top linemen?”

    Different day, same tune.

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      2. Our Aesthetics Professor at USC told us never to do that,John…
        #….It’sUpToUsToExerciseAestheticRestraint….
        #[HeAlsoSaidNotToOverdoLookingAtYourFavoritePainting]..

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      3. Unlike Joe’s story yesterday to Maui residents about having lost his home to a fire! It was contained to the kitchen and out in about 5 minutes, according to the firefighters.

        It really is disgusting the way he lies, in an effort to sound relatable. One of his worst was lying to Gold Star families, “I know what’s like to have your son shipped home in a drape covered casket.”

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      5. The mentally challenged MAGAT feels the need to give us a daily Biden update. He still has yet to prove he knows something about football. But he knows Joe’s daily itinerary

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  12. Was that the ‘Declaration of Independence’ recited by some poster up above, I just scrolled by it and didn’t see the author

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  13. “One Million Dollars” (Dr. Evil, Austin Powers International Man of Mystery)
    USC looks at this as an investment in the future. I don’t know who she played for or if it was offensive or defensive, but she’s gotta have a strong football background right?
    All joking aside this has to be a good hire. It was not the B1G that lured her to USC, it was USC. The biggest knock I had on Bohn was his fuddy -duddy style.
    “Gosh, gee-whizz we sure had fun” Mike Bohn on hiring Lincoln Riley. Bohn canceled boosters and events, which were part of the strong Alumni presence. I’m talking a wait and see approach with this hire, if we win Saturday I’ll claim it was a great move.

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    1. How many Saturday wins in a row make it super duper pooper move?
      #I’mGoing with 15 straight….
      #…..In2023,2024And2025

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      1. Well Juju Lewis committed to USC this morning, does that count?
        When she starts lobbying the Heisman trust to reinstate Reggie’s trophy, then it will be up there with a goodest good move.

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  14. Jen: Just take care of football and everything will turn out great. Don’t let Folt’s equity bs affect USC sports. There is a good chance Folt will want some type of program that guarantees that women basketball players receive the same NIL money as male players or similar nonsense.

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    2. Thing about NIL is it pure capitalistic and the left has not gotten hold of it yet. When they do it will all fall apart.

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    1. Ha!
      When I was sitting at the bar of The Townhouse Bar and Grill in Emeryville with a bunch of coarse looking fellow Sicilians and we were grading the beautiful women who walked in the door it occurred to me “there is something a ironically twisted about this…”

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  16. Last year, the Trojans had 0 first rounders playing on defense with Bullock and Tuli being the highest rated as 2nd round at best with Blackmon being rated a 4th round grade.

    This year Bullock has a first round grade, Alexander has a first round grade, Barrs has a 2nd round grade, Sullivan, Roland-Wallace and Lucas have third round grade and more defenders who are expected to get drafted in the upcoming two years. Unless USC NIL efforts fall apart, there is no excuse for USC not to become better in getting talent. If the new AD can help elevate the NIL operations, then this will be an excellent hire. Bohn, literally had no clue as to how to position USC in this new hybrid professionalism/amateur environment. He merely stocked the department with cronies and homies. It’s no wonder word is getting around to Riley’s disillusionment.

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    1. LIKED!…..It’s no wonder word is getting around to Riley’s disillusionment.

      Has Riley made any public comments on the new AD hire?

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      1. ‘Ol Mule Shoe hired the Three Stooges to coach his defense, he ain’t got room to talk about shit

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