Allen Park — The Detroit Lions are making a key addition to the team’s front office, hiring USC’s chief of staff of athletics Brandon Sosna. The team confirmed the hire, but coach Dan Campbell declined to provide additional details on what Sosna’s role would entail.
“I would rather just go a little more in depth later on about all that,” Campbell said. I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t think I was gonna be talking about that right now, so I don’t want to talk out of place with it.”
Named to Forbes “30 under 30” list in 2020, Sosna was reported to have played a significant role in orchestrating USC’s coaching search that landed the school Oklahoma’s Lincoln Riley last November.
Sosna joined USC a year earlier, overseeing the athletic department’s external operations, including media relations and ticket sales. He held a similar role with the University of Cincinnati in 2019, following athletic director Mike Bohn from one school to the other.
According to Forbes, USC football set a record for attendance and ticket revenue under Sosna’s stewardship.
“He’s had a profound impact on the modernization of the athletic department,” a USC source told ESPN. “He helped us attract industry leaders and helped push our football program on the rapid trajectory toward competitiveness.”
It’s worth noting, the Lions finished last in the NFL in attendance last season, averaging 51,522 fans for the team’s eight home games at Ford Field.
Prior to entering the college ranks, Sosna spent two years with the Cleveland Browns. There he had responsibilities pertaining to the team’s salary cap, working under then-general manager John Dorsey.
Dorsey currently works with the Lions as a senior personnel executive.
The Lions expressed interest in Sosna last offseason, as well, reportedly interviewing him for a front-office job.
“It would take something pretty significant for me to want to leave here,” Sosna told the Los Angeles Times following that reported interview. “I think what I would say is that one sign of a healthy and well-respected program is when people are trying to hire your people. Whether that’s administrative staff, our coaches in football, our coaches in other sports, if we’re not being talked about, if our staff aren’t being recruited, then we’re doing it wrong.”
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers
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