Michigan Football HC Kyle Whittingham, new GM are in ‘lockstep’
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
The General Manager role in college football is a new, yet very important position in the current college football landscape.
With NIL regulations changing every season, plus the numerous lawsuits that are making their way through the courts, a successful football program needs someone who is in tune with the changing rules and is unafraid to put their fingerprints on the operation.
Similar to the NFL, a college football GM and the head football coach need to be on the same page. Roster construction is not a one-person job – there needs to be multiple voices in the room when debating how to distribute NIL money, what the philosophies will be in terms of high school vs. college recruiting, and what the program needs to do to stay competitive for years to come.
For the Michigan Wolverines, head coach Kyle Whittingham officially announced the hire of Dave Peloquin as the program’s next General Manager. Peloquin brings 25 years of experience in the college sports industry to Ann Arbor.
As reported by MaizenBrew’s Trevor Woods last month, Peloquin has most recently been the GM of the intercollegiate division for the agency Athletes First.
Before that, Peloquin spent two decades at powerhouse Notre Dame, serving the Irish football program for 21 years under five different head coaches. He was Notre Dame’s Director of Player Personnel from 2004 to 2023 and held several other titles during that span, including Director of Football Development (2007–2013) and Assistant Athletic Director of Strategic Initiatives (2023–2025). Notre Dame appeared in two national championship games during his time in South Bend.
Now, he comes to Ann Arbor to join forces with Whittingham to rebuild the football program, looking to turn the page after back-to-back disappointing seasons riddled with scandals.
“We are in lockstep of where we want to go and what our vision is,” Whittingham said at a press conference on Tuesday. “I did a lot of research making that hire. It’s a critical hire. Your GM is one of the linchpins of your program, and we’re absolutely on the same page. Dave is just a completely meticulous, thorough, organized individual, and that’s what you have to be as a crew.
You gotta be very meticulous and thorough, you’re gonna get buried. And so, I am excited to have him on board. He’s put together a really good supporting cast for himself, in his department there, and we’re still one or two bodies away from being complete, but Dave brings a lot to this program.”
Peloquin has wasted no time building out that supporting cast. Rivals’ Steve Wiltfong reported that the Michigan football program hired Skylar Phan, the former Director of Recruiting Strategy at USC. Phan is well respected in recruiting circles, having helped USC land the Rivals No. 1-ranked recruiting class for 2026.
Wiltfong predicted that Phan could be responsible for overseeing all official and unofficial visits, providing individual recruiting strategies and building relationships with top targets and their families.
“She’s an up-and-coming superstar in the landscape,” a source told Wiltfong.
Whittingham alluded to more additions coming to both the front office and the roster in the months ahead.
Michigan’s investment in a new GM who brings experience at the highest level of the business signals that Whittingham is all-in on shaping his program the way he wants it to look. As NIL and the transfer portal continue to reshape the landscape, the programs that build smart, experienced front offices could have a distinct edge. With Peloquin and Whittingham aligned, the Wolverines are betting that the future belongs to the best-run operations.
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos