USC hires Washington's Jennifer Cohen as next athletic director
USC has found its new athletic director.
USC announced Monday afternoon that it has hired Washington’s Jennifer Cohen to run the athletic department. Cohen will replace Mike Bohn, who abruptly resigned from his position back in May.
Cohen has been the athletic director at Washington since 2016 but has been at UW since 1998. She first joined the UW athletic department staff as an assistant director of development. She also worked in fundraising at both the university and the athletic department before working her way up to athletic director.
Additionally, Cohen is a Southern California native who was recently named to the College Football Playoff selection committee.
Cohen's first day on the job at USC will be Tuesday, the school said.
"Jen is an experienced, engaged, and steadfast leader who takes a student-centered approach in building and running an athletics program. And, she has built a reputation as a fierce competitor who wants to win in every sport the right way," USC president Carol Folt said. "We are experiencing an unprecedented transformation in college athletics, and Jen has the strategic vision and experience to lead USC Athletics through this historic time which includes joining America's premier conference, the Big Ten, and hosting several venues for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. There has never been a more exciting or important period in the history of USC athletics."
At Washington, Cohen oversaw the football head coach transition from Chris Petersen to Jimmy Lake and also made the decision to fire Lake after only 13 games. From there, Cohen hired Kalen DeBoer from Fresno State and DeBoer quickly got the Huskies back on the winning track. UW went 4-8 in 2021 before going 11-2 in 2022, DeBoer’s first year on the job.
USC, meanwhile, is entering its second season under Lincoln Riley, who Bohn was able to hire away from Oklahoma. Riley led the Trojans to an 11-3 record last fall.
The news comes just weeks after Washington accepted an invitation to leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten. USC is also making the move for the Big Ten, beginning in 2024.
"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," Cohen said. "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."
