Following USC’s hiring of former Arkansas Head Coach Eric Musselman Thursday, the Ashland, Ohio native addressed Trojan fans and the media alongside Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen Friday at Galen Center.

“We’re looking for sustained success here, and excellence at a high level,” Cohen said. “We want to be the best at everything we do here.”

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The USC marching band gave Musselman a spirited welcome; former Trojan and NBA champion Nick Young was in attendance, and University President Carol Folt expressed her gratitude for the new regime.

“We’re gonna put a team on the floor that everybody’s extremely proud of,” Musselman said. “We’ll play with passion, we’ll play with great energy, great enthusiasm and our team will play with good effort.”

The 59-year-old is no stranger to Southern California, and he reminded those in attendance about his ties to the region.

“My first job was out of college, I had graduated from the University of San Diego,” Musselman said. “I was fortunate enough to get a job with the [Los Angeles] Clippers as an account executive.”

The press conference came in the wake of guard Bronny James’ declaration for the NBA draft and entering the transfer portal on Friday. 

Sophomore forward Vincent Iwuchukwu also entered his name into the portal on Friday. Class of 2024 four-star forward commit Brody Kozlowski also decommitted from the program on Friday, leaving USC’s high school recruiting pipeline bare following the same actions from four-star guard Trent Perry and three-star guard Liam Campbell. 

Guard Isaiah Collier, who is yet to announce his plans for next season, was also present at the conference.

During the current time of mass exodus from the Trojans, former University of Massachusetts forward Josh Cohen announced that he’d be flipping his transfer commitment from Arkansas to USC, following coach Musselman in the process.

Musselman acknowledged former Trojans Head Coach Andy Enfield, who spent 11 seasons with the program before taking the same position at Southern Methodist University.

“Obviously, Coach Enfield has been mentioned in the coaching fraternity,” Musselman said. “We want to just continue to do things that he’s done and then try to build on some of those things as well.”

Musselman looks to bring USC back to March Madness following a disappointing 2023-24 campaign that saw the Trojans finish ninth in the Pac-12, the team’s final year in the conference before their upcoming move to the Big Ten.

“We have high standards, high expectations,” Musselman said. “When you look at the landscape of college athletics, the Big Ten is as good as there is anywhere.” 

Musselman is coming off a rocky season with the Razorbacks, as the team missed the NCAA Tournament following three straight appearances. Nonetheless,  with a change of scenery and a blank canvas to work with, he’ll have the opportunity to rebuild the culture of the team as a vocal leader and proven winner.

“It’s gonna start in the summer with our guys, them understanding the expectations of playing for 40 minutes whether we’re up, whether we’re down,” Musselman said. “There’s a lot of ways to win basketball games when the odds are against you.”

Before the Trojans’ inaugural Big Ten season begins in November, Musselman will have his work cut out for him in building a new roster, fostering team chemistry and adjusting to the new environment. 

With a lengthy coaching resume and spirit to win, Musselman hopes to bring USC back to the relevancy of prior years.