Following USC's official move to the Big Ten, Charles Griffin Cale Director of Athletics Jennifer Cohen penned her first letter in a new series of monthly updates.
usctrojans.com
Dear Trojan Family:
Today is a monumental day in the storied history of USC Athletics, as we officially become members of the Big Ten Conference. This historic move will have an enormous and transformative impact on our student-athletes, our supporters, and our institution.
I want to mark the occasion by sharing some insight into our Department's ongoing work to position USC Athletics for sustained success in this new era of college sports. This message also marks my first edition of
The State of Troy, a series of monthly updates directly from me, as I hope to further engage with all of you, while providing timely and relevant information and receiving vital feedback. (Future editions will be shorter – I promise!)
The B1G Stage
Over the past year, transition and change have been two key themes in my life, personally and professionally. Being named the Director of Athletics of this incredible institution last August was not only an honor, but the responsibility of a lifetime, and our transition into the premier conference in all of college athletics has been among our foremost priorities since I joined the Trojan Family. None of it would be possible without the leadership and vision of President Folt, Suzanne Nora Johnson, and the Board of Trustees, and we are grateful for their guidance and support during this historic moment.
Being a member of the Big Ten will enable us to further invest in the student-athlete experience by providing us with additional resources; to create exciting new rivalries with like-minded institutions; to celebrate and share our storied traditions with Trojans across the country and with new generations of fans; and to provide our student-athletes and university with unprecedented national exposure and opportunities. Our entire Department has committed time, effort, and energy to ensure our Trojans are best positioned to capitalize on these opportunities.
Everything we've accomplished so far – or will achieve in the days ahead – is made possible by your faithful support. It is your pride, passion, and love for USC Athletics that sustains our work, and we are forever grateful to have you with us for this exciting new journey.
We invite you to follow along with us into this new chapter at
usctrojans.com/uscbigten, where we will aggregate all our Big Ten transition coverage and celebrations. We understand that while change generates excitement, it can also create confusion, which is why we will also utilize this web page to provide all information related to the Big Ten transition.
To make following the Trojans as easy as possible in the Big Ten era, we are also excited to offer all our supporters a free year of
B1G+, the Big Ten Network's subscription video streaming service for non-televised events. This complimentary offer, courtesy of the Big Ten Network and valued at $89.99 a year, will help fans catch every second of the Trojans this season.
Thank you, again, for making this B1G day possible!
Trojans in Paris
While we celebrate a time of transition here in Los Angeles, we are just as excited to embrace the great Olympic tradition of our institution this summer at the Summer Games in Paris, where 67 current, former, and incoming Trojans are representing their countries on the world's greatest stage.
Watching our community rally behind these world-class athletes is such a unique and uplifting experience. There is no question that USC is the place to be for aspiring Olympians, producing more Olympic appearances, overall medalists, and gold medalists than any other U.S. university. Our Olympic success is truly unparalleled, and we're excited to root for all our Trojans as they look to add to USC's incredible tradition of excellence.
You can follow all our Olympic coverage by clicking below or by using the hashtag #USC2Paris.
House settlement
Last Friday, the NCAA, the Power 5 conferences, and the plaintiffs filed their long-form proposed agreement in the
House,
Hubbard, and
Carter antitrust lawsuits, the next step toward a new model of college athletics that includes revenue sharing between universities and student-athletes. These lawsuits and their landmark settlement will transform college athletics forever and affect our daily work immediately, and I want to outline their impact on USC Athletics.
The proposed agreement – which still must be approved by the federal court – includes two key financial components, set to commence in the 2025-26 academic year. The first is a $2.8 billion settlement to former student-athletes, to be paid out over ten years by the NCAA and its member institutions. The second is a revenue-sharing model that permits athletics departments to share up to 22% of revenues with student-athletes, based on a formula to which all schools must adhere, and which, for the 2025-26 year, is an estimated $22 million. The settlement also includes other student-athlete benefits, such as increased scholarship offerings.
There are still many outstanding questions about what comes next, including, but not limited to: 1) how will USC distribute the estimated $22 million across our 23 sports; 2) will USC add scholarships to any of our sports; 3) how will USC fund the additional $22 million cost and any additional scholarships for our student-athletes. While we await further guidance from the courts, the Big Ten Conference, the NCAA and others, our team has been hard at work modeling out every potential scenario to ensure we thrive in this new era. We will do everything we can to provide world-class experiences for our student-athletes and our supporters. The dominant theme of this new era of collegiate athletics is change, but our commitment to our Trojans and our fans is unwavering.
NIL
Over the last year, simultaneous with our preparation for the Big Ten, our administration has prioritized developing our NIL operations to ensure USC becomes THE premier destination for student-athletes in the Name, Image, and Likeness era.
Our partnership with House of Victory, the official collective of USC Athletics, has never been stronger, and we truly believe no collective in the country has enhanced its profile, operations, and results more in the past year than HOV. For the 2023-2024 academic year, HOV exceeded all its fundraising goals, and our donors stepped up to help us more than double our total funds from the previous year, putting USC in the upper tier of NIL collective support nationally. We are extremely proud of its growth and for the generosity and support from Trojans everywhere.
As our goals continue to grow in this evolving space, we have another critical year related to NIL support ahead, but we are excited about our progress and committed to another successful year in 2024-25. To help support our student-athletes further, consider giving to House of Victory.
Combining the generous support of our fanbase, the reach of the USC Athletics brand, the work of our Department and partners, and the power of the second-largest media market in the country, we are confident we will make USC the place to be for student-athletes seeking to maximize their NIL opportunities.
Looking ahead
I'll conclude with a few key dates and updates:
- The 2024-25 athletic season begins August 10, as USC Soccer takes on Long Beach State at Dignity Health Sports Park in an exhibition match. While the $38 million renovations of Rawlinson Stadium are completed, USC Soccer will play all but two of its home contests at Dignity this season, with two additional contests (October 17 vs. Ohio State and October 27 vs. UCLA) in the Coliseum.
- Our 2024 Salute to Troy kickoff event will take place Friday, August 23 at Allyson Felix Field at Katherine B. Loker Track Stadium. This event will also serve as our Big Ten Kickoff event. The deadline to register is Friday, August 16.
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