USC Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen Discusses NIL, Donors, Pac-12 Dissolution

We compiled some quotes from a recent interview Cohen gave to local media.

Just five months into her role as USC's director of athletics, Jennifer Cohen is feeling confident about the quality of name, image, and likeness (NIL) opportunities available to her student-athletes. Cohen recently appeared on a live stream hosted on the Inside Troy YouTube channel where she discussed the current state of NIL at USC, and its impacts on things like recruiting and player retention. 

In the transfer portal era, retaining athletic talent that schools spend so much effort recruiting has never been more complicated. Cohen proposed a solution: development. 

"If we are providing great coaches and great services and great facilities, but also opportunities through NIL, we're going to retain our student athletes. And that allows us to recruit the best of the best. So that is why that philosophy is the right thing to do, because we have to focus on making sure that we are developing the current student athletes that we have.... That speaks for itself when you're recruiting." 

USC head football coach Lincoln Riley recently rebuilt nearly his entire defensive coaching staff over the past few months. Many of these new coaches, like former North Dakota State head coach Matt Entz, are known for their ability to develop talent. Sounds like Riley and Cohen are on the same page in that sense, something that shouldn't be taken for granted in an ever-changing college sports landscape. 

Right now, Riley and his coaching staff are flying all over the country to visit recruits, probably pitching them this exact vision. Combine that with the case studies of Caleb Williams, Bronny James, and Isaiah Collier, and you've got a good pitch on your hands. 

Cohen also spoke about new rule changes being implemented this summer regarding how NIL collectives can interact with USC coaching staff members. She said this would help "alleviate" some issues regarding inconsistent interpretations of the rules around how colleges can interact with high school recruits. 

"I think we're going to get more clarity on those rules as we move forward", said Cohen. She also mentioned that she's working with the House of Victory donor collective to "support all 23 of our sports programs, and all 600 of our student athletes". 

For Cohen, this is her second stint as a director of athletics in a Pac 12 school. She previously served in the same role at the University of Washington. Cohen, without going into detail, commented on the dissolution of the Pac 12, expressing that "there was a lot of effort made to try to maintain the traditions and the pride we had in our conference".