USC football has a new general manager, and he’s coming from a hated rival.
On Friday, head coach Lincoln Riley announced that Chad Bowden had been hired as the team’s next general manager. Bowden comes to USC after spending the last four years with Notre Dame, including the 2024 season as the Fighting Irish’s general manager. The move comes roughly a month after USC finished the 2024 season 7-6 with a victory in the Las Vegas Bowl over Texas A&M.
“We are very excited to welcome Chad Bowden to our staff,” Riley said in a statement. “His outstanding body of work in recruiting and roster management is recognized throughout the country. With the support of Jen Cohen and the administration, Chad’s hire is both vital to the future of our program and sends a strong message about the direction of USC Football. We’re excited for him to arrive and hit the ground running.”
Bowden arrived at Notre Dame in 2021 from Cincinnati alongside then-Irish defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman. Although he started out as a defensive recruiting coordinator, Bowden saw himself rise up the ranks with the Irish after Freeman was promoted to head coach. His final year with Notre Dame, working as the program’s first general manager, was punctuated with a trip to the College Football Playoff, where the Fighting Irish fell to Ohio State in the title game.
In all four years that Bowden was with Notre Dame, he helped the Irish put together four unanimous top-12 recruiting classes, according to all four major recruiting sights. This highlights his ability to help bring in top talent that has ultimately led to Notre Dame’s year-over-year success since 2022, when Freeman took over the helm of the Fighting Irish. For all his success at Notre Dame, Bowden was named the Player Personnel Director of the Year by FootballScoop this month.
Even with his close ties to Freeman as well as Notre Dame’s improvement over the past three years, Bowden found himself drawn to the challenge of helping USC improve from a disappointing first year in the Big Ten.
“My wife, Ava, and I couldn’t be more grateful and excited to join the Trojan Family,” Bowden said in a statement. “Jen Cohen, Lincoln Riley and USC’s total commitment to excellence make this a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. This is a place with the resources, facilities and support to build a perennial winner, and I’m excited to get to work to help bring more national championships to USC.”
Despite his success in helping coaches put together well-balanced teams and well-constructed rosters, it is currently unclear exactly how Bowden will help the football team and work with Riley, especially considering that USC previously had Dave Emerick serving as the general manager. The Orange County Register and the Los Angeles Times reported that Emerick is set to remain with the football team in a different capacity.
With Bowden now in the fold, USC will now look to figure out how to recruit and revenue share with both its current and incoming student-athletes, as the pending House v. NCAA settlement is likely to be finalized later this year.