Joe Mihalich Jr., former Penn men’s assistant basketball coach, was hired on a temporary basis by St. Joe’s as general manager for the men’s and women’s basketball teams. The position was previously held by Rob Sullivan, who was hired by Rutgers last month.
The news was first circulated on X by Noah Henderson, Director of Sport Management at Loyola.
“It appears St. Joe’s has hired Joe Mihalich Jr. as General Manager for Men’s and Women’s Basketball,” Henderson wrote.
With the post, Henderson attached a photograph of the St. Joe’s University Directory listing Mihalich as such.
Later, Henderson followed up his post with an update that Mihalich was filling in “on a temporary basis” and had not been “officially hired.” He cited a “source within the SJU athletics department.”
A request for comment was left with St. Joe’s Athletics.
Mihalich previously served under Steve Donahue, the former head coach of Penn men’s basketball and current head coach at St. Joe’s. Both Donahue and Mihalich were fired from Penn earlier this year, after 10 years with the program.
Now the two are reunited on Hawk Hill.
Penn earned their first win against St. Joe’s in five years on Monday night in the Palestra, defeating the Hawks 83-74. Mihalich was seen sitting on the St. Joe’s bench alongside assistant coaches during the game.
In the age of name, image, and likeness deals and the transfer portal, some college basketball programs have begun hiring general managers to oversee operations like student-athlete branding, NIL opportunities, and donor relations, among other responsibilities.
Fellow Big 5 programs Villanova and La Salle have general managers, Baker Dunleavy and Safet Kastrat, respectively. There are no Ivy League basketball general managers, because the conference has distanced itself from the pay-to-play era of college sports.
