Jennifer Cohen's Potential Hire Could Transform USC Basketball

USC has a chance to do something big here.

Mar 9, 2024; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman gives directions to his / Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

The USC Trojans could hire their next head coach sooner rather than later. The program will interview Arkansas basketball head and coach Eric Musselman for the vacant head coaching spot at USC.

Musselman will interview for the job today and is viewed as the primary candidate for the Trojans.

According to basketball analyst Jeff Goodman, Musselman is at the top of USC's list, along with TCU head coach Jaime Dixon and BYU head coach Mark Pope.

The coaching carousel keeps spinning! @GoodmanHoops' latest:

"Eric Musselman has risen to the top of the USC list. Jamie Dixon, Mark Pope... there are others in that mix. But I won't be surprised if Musselman is the guy"

After Dark is LIVE:https://t.co/Q4Dzm1QtSX pic.twitter.com/k3CuTfVgPw

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) April 3, 2024

According to sources, the situation should move fast as USC expects to hire a head coach as soon as this week. If the Trojans could land Musselman, it would be the first significant hire athletic director Jenniffer Cohen would make since she was hired in August 2023.

Cohen could have the chance to change the trajectory of USC basketball. Instead of USC just being viewed as a football school, the potential hire of Musselman can turn USC into a threat in the college basketball world year in and year out.

You already have the resources to recruit; the only thing that needs to be done is to add an experienced head coach who has led his teams deep into tournament runs. This past season wasn't the prettiest, but before 2024, he has led the Razorbacks to three straight NCAA tournament appearances, and in two of the three years, they landed in the Elite Eight.

Musselman has a winning percentage of 70% in his tenure as the Arkansas head coach. The 59-year-old head coach was paid $4.2 million last season at Arkansas, according to USC beat writer Ryan Kartje. That put him as the 12th most among college basketball coaches. Cohen and the USC athletic department may need to go higher than that to attract Musselman. Money should be no issue for the Trojans; we'll see how badly they want to turn this program around.