New AD Mike Bohn on settling in at USC and the big decision ahead of him

He's trying to learn as many names as he can, do a lot of listening and, yes, eventually make a decision on the future of the Trojans football program.

And it's all happening at once -- from those small details to that biggest one.

"The other day I was asking directions and they said, 'Go on Fig,' and I'm like, 'Where is Fig?' Well, they call obviously Figueroa 'Fig,' and I'm like, OK," Bohn shared during a casual moment Tuesday sitting outside Heritage Hall. "And then I had a staff member call our director of football operations [Joseph Wood] 'Woody,' and I said 'Who's Woody? I don't even know who Woody is. I know Joseph.' And they're like, 'Oh, we call Joseph 'Woody.' OK."

Bohn has officially been on the job 16 days, and he's still living out of a hotel near campus while understanding it may take some time to bring normalcy to that part of his life.

"We're trying to move things as quickly as possible, but the housing industry and inspections and escrows and finance folks sometimes don't move at the same speed as intercollegiate athletics," he quipped in an exclusive interview with TrojanSports.com. "But we understand that process, we're respectful of it and we're very fortunate to have some people that are helping us and giving us good advice."

He could have just as easily been talking about the decision he has to make regarding the status of football coach Clay Helton and the future of the program.

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Fans were eager for a resolution -- well, their desired resolution -- this week following the end of the regular season, but it doesn't look like any such decision is imminent. The Trojans are still technically in the hunt for a spot in the Pac-12 title game if Utah loses to Colorado this weekend, and it seems a safe bet that no decision of any kind will be forthcoming before then.

But Bohn wouldn't commit to any timeline, for that matter, when asked if it would be fair to anticipate a verdict by Sunday or Monday.

"Again, I'm not trying to sidestep the question, we are on no timetable," he said Tuesday. "I will say this that coach Helton, the entire staff, more importantly the student-athletes, we are all competing our tails off to represent USC with pride and distinction and we all recognize the desire to be the best -- and that's the goal. And that's a lofty goal, but that's the objective, so as we go through the learning and listening and evaluation process that's the ultimate goal and I believe that's why our student-athletes come here."