Sunday’s Takeaway: Another Culture War Casualty.

“Hey Karen, did you get a haircut over the weekend?” “Is that a new dress–it looks great, it’s a really good color for you.” “You look fantastic!”

Wasn’t that long ago when offering platitudes like those above were considered harmless and complementary.

Today, it’s offensive and insulting!

But here’s the thing. If there is an unhappy employee who has to experience these types of egregious assaults, then the next thing you know you’ll have the same law firm Baylor University hired conducting an independent, albeit biased investigation.

That’s what happened when “Four current and former USC employees said that staffers inside the athletics department had raised concerns to the law firm about Bohn,” per the LA Times.

Cozen O’Connor describes Smith on its website as “the founder of the nation’s first practice dedicated to the institutional response to sexual and gender-based harassment, violence, child abuse, elder abuse, other forms of discrimination and harassment, workplace misconduct, and criminal conduct.” Smith’s past work includes high-profile investigations into the handling of sexual harassment and misconduct at Baylor, Virginia, and Colorado. 

I’m probably biased too. And for good reason!

Because I don’t consider generations of men born in the 1960s or earlier as bad people.

These people are your fathers, your uncles, your grandfathers, and in many cases, your athletic directors.

These generations of men were raised during an era when saying something nice to a co-worker was considered the norm and being respectful.

Today, you need permission to say hello and ask about someone’s new hairstyle.

It’s been pretty quiet on USC’s Culture War front since Lincoln Riley was hired as the head football coach. And that’s partly because Mike Bohn and his then Chief of Staff Brandon Sosna came from the University of Cincinnati with one goal.

They were brought in to change the USC athletics department’s culture and its direction. No more incestual hiring that led to nowhere.

With all of the internal investigations about sexual abuse by the Dean of the Medical school, or allegations against the Deam of the Business school’s management style in the rearview mirror, it meant it was time to invest in the athletic department again.

Starting with the football program.

Four years later, on an otherwise typical Friday afternoon during the off-season, Trojans athletic director and football-saving hero, Mike Bohn released the following statement.

“After more than 40 years of college athletics leadership, it is the right time to step away from my position as Director of Athletics at the University of Southern California. I have dedicated my life to serving student-athletes and advancing the enterprise of intercollegiate athletics. I will always be proud of leading the program out of the most tumultuous times in the history of the profession and at USC with a restored reputation and national milestone accomplishments. I led the process to join the Big 10 Conference, hired marquee Head Coaches, produced the highest graduation rate in school history and won numerous national and conference championships. As a former student-athlete myself, my purpose and identity are rooted in supporting young people as they pursue their athletic, academic, and personal goals. I have been fortunate to have had so many wonderful opportunities and met so many terrific people, and I depart wishing the very best to all with whom I worked and served. In moving on, it is important now that I focus on being present with my treasured family, addressing ongoing health challenges, and reflecting on how I can be impactful in the future.”

I’m not aware of any ongoing health challenges. But Bohn’s abrupt resignation would indicate it was something serious and deserves our thoughts and prayers.

Shortly after the resignation was accepted by USC, President Carol Folt released the University’s statement, and there was a definite disconnect between the two.

Dear Trojan Community,
I am writing to let you know that I have accepted Mike Bohn’s resignation as director of athletics, effective today. On behalf of the Trojan Family, I thank Mike for his contributions to our athletics department during a time of rapid transformation and growth. We will be announcing a transition team comprising both internal and external leaders in the coming days and will launch a national search for a new director of athletics shortly.

Over the last four years, the USC athletics department has transformed into a national powerhouse. In our singular pursuit of excellence, I am committed to ensuring we have the right leadership in place to achieve our goals. As part of that commitment and as we prepare to move to the Big Ten, we conducted a thorough review of the athletics department, including its operations, culture, and strategy. Having built a strong foundation over the last few years, now is the time for new direction grounded in our values and in expertise needed to fulfill our aspirational vision for Trojan athletics.
I’m proud of how far we have come, and I know we can go even further. We are laser-focused on positioning USC and our student-athletes for success and continuing the momentum of our student-centric athletics programs with excellence on and off the field. We will keep you updated on our progress.
Sincerely,
Carol L. Folt
President

I’m hoping President Folt actually signed the letter.–Heck, I hope she actually wrote the “Thank you,” because there was not one mention of Mike’s ongoing health battle.

Let’s be honest. After reading both prepared statements, Mike Bohn did not resign because of health issues and wanting to spend more time with his family.

He was forced out and he knew he had no chance to win a Culture War once the investigation was given to a biased arbiter.

Part of the complaint is he’s derelict in his duties and not spending too much time not doing his job.

The Times report said it spoke to six USC “sources” who raised concerns about Mike Bohn’s management of the department. He was described as a poor manager who missed meetings he was expected to attend and was often absent from key events, including USC national championship victories.

Two former USC coaches told The Times that Bohn’s leadership of the department was a primary reason they left.

What the Times failed to mention is that those coaches also wanted a pay raise in non-revenue-generating sports before they took jobs elsewhere for more money.

USC’s athletic department is now paying the current market rate for an elite head football coach that can generate revenue for a women’s track coach who quit when her demands weren’t met. I’m sure the SEC has the higher moral standards the coach was looking for.

So what did the investigation uncover other than a bunch of non-specific allegations coming out during a time when a woman can’t even have her own bathroom anymore?

Bohn said this past Friday that he would not respond to direct questions regarding the newspaper’s claims. But in a statement provided to The Times in response to those questions, Bohn said, “that he will always be proud of leading the program out of the most tumultuous times in the history of the profession.”

I don’t blame him.

Regardless of how Mike answered the questions, regardless of the rationale, USC is making Bohn a sacrificial lamb because he probably put a free hand on a shoulder while shaking hands, and that made someone feel intimidated–allegedly.

I read the LA Times report and each subsequent update and I still see nothing that would justify his firing.

And let’s be honest because that’s what it was; Mike was forced to resign!

Rather than fight a battle he can’t win answering questions about why he chose to let a subordinate run a meeting. Or answer questions about why certain head coaches didn’t get a pay raise when it isn’t based on gender or race, but economics, it is a lost cause when a biased investigator is leading an investigation.

Give me some specific examples of inappropriate comments to female staffers that sent them scurrying to safe spaces to fight a culture war.

Otherwise, this is just another loss for USC and another step back for the program.

I know Mike’s favorite movie is Hoosiers. I know this because we spent over an hour one afternoon talking about the movie and what drew us to it.

Reflecting back, I think I know why–it was a simpler time.

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