Mike Bohn suddenly resigns as USC athletic director

USC athletic director Mike Bohn, who in three and a half years at the helm of Trojans athletics seemingly helped right the ship in the department and most notably for the football program, suddenly and surprisingly resigned Friday afternoon.

The Los Angeles Times’ Ryan Kartje first reported the news, noting that the newspaper had asked questions to Bohn and USC a day earlier “about internal criticism of his management of the athletic department,” and that the university had hired a law firm earlier this year to conduct a review of the department.

The Times reported that two sources with knowledge of the situation said Bohn made inappropriate comments to female colleagues “about their dress, hair and weight” that left them uncomfortable.

Bohn did not address any specific claims with The Times — or respond to a text message from TrojanSports.com — but provided a statement Friday to the newspaper.

“After more than 40 years of college athletics leadership, it is the right time to step away from my position as Director of Athletics at the University of Southern California,” Bohn said in the statement. “I have dedicated my life to serving student-athletes and advancing the enterprise of intercollegiate athletics. I will always be proud of leading the program out of the most tumultuous times in the history of the profession and at USC with a restored reputation and national milestone accomplishments. I led the process to join the Big 10 Conference, hired marquee Head Coaches, produced the highest graduation rate in school history and won numerous national and conference championships.

“As a former student-athlete myself, my purpose and identity are rooted in supporting young people as they pursue their athletic, academic, and personal goals. I have been fortunate to have had so many wonderful opportunities and met so many terrific people, and I depart wishing the very best to all with whom I worked and served. In moving on, it is important now that I focus on being present with my treasured family, addressing ongoing health challenges, and reflecting on how I can be impactful in the future.”

USC has not announced who will serve as the interim athletic director.

Bohn notably fired former head football coach Clay Helton two games into the 2021 season and then hired Lincoln Riley away from Oklahoma to take over the program, which led to a seven-win improvement in his first season with an 11-3 finish last fall.

Perhaps even bigger than that, though, Bohn helped lead USC’s upcoming move (along with UCLA) from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten, which shook up the college football world and positioned the Trojans to compete under a bigger national spotlight and with a significantly greater conference revenue share.

Bohn was hired in November of 2019 after former AD Lynn Swann had been fired earlier that fall, with the department mired in controversy from the Varsity Blues admissions scandal.

USC President Carol Folt, who hired Bohn, released a letter to the university community confirming Bohn’s resignation.

While thanking Bohn for his contributions, Folt’s letter was not exactly a celebratory send-off one might ordinarily receive given his accomplishments, noting the university had conducted a thorough review of the athletic department “including its operations, culture and strategy” and that “now is the time for a new direction.”

It’s also notable that Bohn, 62, said he was “resigning” and not retiring.

Folt wrote: “Dear Trojan Community, I am writing to let you know that I have accepted Mike Bohn’s resignation as director of athletics, effective today. On behalf of the Trojan Family, I thank Mike for his contributions to our athletics department during a time of rapid transformation and growth. We will be announcing a transition team comprising both internal and external leaders in the coming days and will launch a national search for a new director of athletics shortly.

“Over the last four years, the USC athletics department has transformed into a national powerhouse. In our singular pursuit of excellence, I am committed to ensuring we have the right leadership in place to achieve our goals. As part of that commitment and as we prepare to move to the Big Ten, we conducted a thorough review of the athletics department, including its operations, culture, and strategy. Having built a strong foundation over the last few years, now is the time for new direction grounded in our values and in expertise needed to fulfill our aspirational vision for Trojan athletics.

“I’m proud of how far we have come, and I know we can go even further. We are laser-focused on positioning USC and our student-athletes for success and continuing the momentum of our student-centric athletics programs with excellence on and off the field. We will keep you updated on our progress.”

Per the LA Times, USC retained Cozen O'Connor attorney Gina Maisto Smith to conduct the review starting in March with concerns being shared to the law firm about Bohn. The Times report also included sources from Bohn’s tenure as AD at Cincinnati that made similar claims about inappropriate comments.

In terms of Bohn’s impact at USC, in addition to the Riley hiring and move to the Big Ten, Bohn also deserves credit for a couple other high-profile hires. He lured Lindsay Gottlieb from an assistant coaching job with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers to take over USC’s women’s basketball program, which reached the NCAA tournament this year for the first time since 2014 in her second season as head coach. And last summer Bohn hired Andy Stankiewicz as head baseball coach, which has so far led to the Trojans’ best season (30-20-1) since the program’s last NCAA regionals appearance in 2015.

Bohn was named an athletic director of the year by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics last year.

The seismic moves of hiring Riley and negotiating the Big Ten move (effective August of 2024) came when Bohn had senior associate athletic director/chief of staff Brandon Sosna intricately involved in all aspects of the department.

Sosna would have been the logical successor to Bohn, but he left USC last summer to take the role of senior director, football administration with the NFL’s Detroit Lions.

Bohn came to USC (along with Sosna) after serving as the AD at Cincinnati from 2014-19. He previously worked as the AD at Idaho, San Diego State and Colorado.

Riley commented on Bohn’s departure in a tweet Saturday afternoon.