The 2024-25 USC Athletics year is officially underway, and what a start it has been for the Trojans! With nine teams competing in the month of September, there is so much energy and excitement around campus. And as much as I've enjoyed every USC victory so far, my favorite part has been watching our student-athletes competing, practicing, socializing, and studying together as they pursue their goals for the year ahead.  Â
As promised in the previous edition of The State of Troy, I want to provide you with some updates on the status of several ongoing athletics facilities projects, before celebrating some exciting wins since my last letter.Â
While the landscape of college athletics continues to evolve, our commitment to providing a best-in-class student-athlete experience remains steadfast. This commitment includes, among other responsibilities, building, maintaining, and updating world-class facilities. Our primary objective for all facilities projects is to provide state-of-the-art spaces that enhance and elevate the experience of our student-athletes across all 23 varsity sports.Â
The projects outlined below are made possible by the generosity of our loyal donors and by the leadership and vision of President Folt and the Board of Trustees, and they will impact the lives of Trojans for generations to come. To all of you who have helped make this progress possible, thank you for your unwavering support to ensure USC is THE PLACE TO BE!Â
Athletics West
The Athletics West capital projects include the construction of a world-class football performance center and the transformation of our baseball facilities and represent our commitment to being Big Ten Ready by providing our student-athletes with exceptional spaces for their training, recovery, and development.Â
To date, our donors have contributed $107 million toward Athletics West, helping us surpass 50% of our $200 million goal. We are currently in the leadership gift phase of the campaign, and you will hear more information about this campaign later this fall. In the meantime, I want to provide further insight on the transformative impact these spaces will have on our student-athletes.
Our football performance center, scheduled to open in summer of 2026, is the centerpiece of our Athletics West campaign, and upon completion, it will serve as the new home for USC Football. Featuring 160,000+ square feet spanning three stories, two full-length practice fields, and state-of-the-art spaces for nutrition, training, and recovery, the football performance center – scheduled for groundbreaking in November – will be a game-changer for our program, assisting in recruiting and retention, providing first-class care, and ensuring that USC is the place to be for the best student-athletes in college football. Once opened, this facility provides an additional benefit by allowing us to reimagine and better utilize the John McKay Center to serve our entire student-athlete population.
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Athletics West also includes the construction of a best-in-class baseball stadium at Dedeaux Field that will serve both our student-athletes and our loyal fans. Featuring a capacity of 2,500 to 3,000 fans with an ability to expand, the new home of USC Baseball will provide multiple seating options for a dynamic fan experience, a state-of-the-art video board, a right field social area, enhanced permanent concessions locations, and many other amenities.Â
The facility will also house a team locker room and players' lounge, nutrition stations, indoor batting cages, and a pitching lab, as well as coaches' offices, team meeting room and a baseball analytics lab. Our goal is to have the new Dedeaux Field ready for practice conditions in spring of 2025 and to welcome fans to the stadium for games in the 2026 season.Â
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Preliminary Rendering (Subject to Change)
We are excited about our progress thus far, and significant work remains to fund these important projects.  We will continue to keep the Trojan Family informed regarding our progress and how you can engage and help with these projects.
THE PLACE TO WIN! Â
As Athletics West continues to move forward, I want to celebrate some important victories from the past several weeks that highlight USC as the unmatched, unquestioned PLACE TO BE for student-athletes to reach their fullest potential in all that they do.Â
Last month, we celebrated the topping-off ceremony for Rawlinson Stadium, marking a key milestone in the ongoing construction of the new home for our women's soccer and women's lacrosse programs.  Featuring a natural grass playing field with a seating capacity of 2,500, Rawlinson Stadium is set to open in the summer of 2025 and offers spectator viewing decks, social areas, a press box, restrooms, a box office, concession stands, and a formal entry plaza.Â
We are so grateful for the support of our donors and University leadership for making this project possible and cannot wait to watch our Women of Troy compete for championships in front of the Trojan Family inside this incredible facility. On the heels of the 50th anniversary of Title IX, and at the outset of the Big Ten era of USC Athletics, this project demonstrates what is possible when Trojans come together around a powerful vision.Â
As August ended on a high note, football also helped us start September with a splash, defeating LSU 27-20 in Las Vegas in front of an Allegiant Stadium record crowd of 63,969. The win over the Tigers was also watched by more than 11 million fans on television and set a record as ABC's most-streamed game ever. Meanwhile, our football program leads the nation with nearly 21 million video views across all social media platforms this month, led by our "Arrival of the Trojan" video, which was produced in a partnership between our football social media team and a USC Cinematic arts student.Â
In addition, all season long, our football program is producing "Only USC," a behind-the-scenes series sponsored by our official donor collective, House of Victory. Featuring player-driven stories and all-access insights into our football program, "Only USC" is a unique NIL engagement that captures the stories of our student-athletes and connects them with our passionate fans across the world. You can watch every episode below.Â
And just last week, current Trojan track and field team member Ezra Frech received a congratulatory call from the President of the United States after earning two gold medals at the Paralympic Games, capping off an incredible Olympic summer in Paris for the Trojans. Altogether, USC athletes earned 17 medals – including nine gold medals – across both competitions, leading the Big Ten and extending our streak of consecutive Olympics with gold medalists that began in 1912! We are so proud of all our Olympic and Paralympic athletes and look forward to honoring them on November 16th during our home football game against Nebraska.
"Zen and the Art of Happiness"Â by Chris Prentiss. Shout out to Trojan Family member Dan Stimmler for sharing this with me.Â
B1G Notes
Since the last State of Troy, it's been a B1G month for USC Athletics. After opening the season against Utah State and hosting our largest crowd for a home opener since 2015, this week we announced sell outs for our home football contests against Wisconsin and Nebraska! As we continue to fill the Coliseum, be on the lookout for ways to share your feedback through fan surveys following upcoming home football games.Â
Here are some additional exciting updates on our transition into the Big Ten:Â
On September 12, our women's soccer program earned the first victory for USC in Big Ten competition, defeating Washington 1-0. The win served as a historic marker for our athletics program, and I look forward to many more wins across all 23 sports this season!
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Our golf programs also began their fall seasons with wins. The men took home the Southern Dunes Invitational team title on September 10 for their first team victory since 2020, while the women claimed the Leadership and Golf Invitational title on September 17.
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In addition to the competitive opportunities available in college athletics' premier conference, the Big Ten provides both unprecedented brand exposure for our programs and unique experiences for our students. This month, USC debuted on the Big Ten Network, which reached 43 million unique individuals who consumed 15.5 billion minutes of content last year. Through the first two weeks of the football season, BTN's average audience was up 46% and total viewing time increased 148%, reaching new audiences of engaged fans coast-to-coast.Â
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Meanwhile, our September 12 broadcast of women's volleyball's clash with No. 1 Pitt marked the first production from the newly constructed control room inside the Galen Center, and our streams on B1G+ the following two days were powered entirely by USC students participating in the Big Ten's StudentU program.  About StudentU
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Our success extends from streaming to social media, where our Big Ten launch campaign outpaced our peers and where four of our programs – men's and women's basketball, women's soccer, and women's volleyball – lead the Big Ten in engagement rate for their sports since July 1. We are so proud of our teams, our students, and our staff for working together to showcase the Trojans to the world. It's clear the USC Athletics brand has never been bigger.
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As the Trojans continue to kickstart their seasons across our fall sports, House of Victory has launched a new NIL effort to benefit all our programs. We have BIG goals this year which requires BIG NIL investment. Learn more below to support our student-athletes today!  SUPPORT NOW
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This fall promises to be an exciting time across all our sports, and I hope to see you at many of our events. We are so grateful for your continued support of Trojan Athletics!
Fight On! Jen Cohen
Charles Griffin Cale Director of AthleticsÂ
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