Gardner-Webb welcomes Brendan Fahey as new AD

Gardner-Webb introduces Brendan Fahey as new athletic director Tuesday. (Photo by Gardner-Webb University)

By Jacob Conley (@gwujake)

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. — There is a new Dawg in town.

Gardner-Webb University introduced Brendan Fahey as its new vice president for athletics and athletic director Tuesday, replacing Andrew Goodrich, who took a similar position at Akron. Fahey comes to GWU from Wagner College in New York, where he spent over a decade rising through the ranks of the Seahawks’ athletic department before replacing his mentor, Walt  Hameline, at the helm on Staten Island.

“Gardner-Webb offers great opportunities both personally and professionally,” Fahey said. “This is a part of the country where we want to live and raise our daughters. Professionally, I could see from the moment I stepped on campus that Gardner-Webb is a special place. The facilities are incredible, but what has impressed me most is that the people have been so friendly and welcoming. I can’t wait to get started and accomplish some big things.”

Fahey inherits a Runnin’ Bulldog program on the rise. Since 2019, GWU has won Big South Conference championships in men’s basketball, women’s basketball, football (twice), men’s soccer and men’s tennis. So far in 2025, the men’s soccer team is 5-0 and ranked seventh in the latest national Associated Press Top 25 poll, while football is receiving votes in the latest FCS rankings.

“What the men’s soccer and football teams are doing right now is incredible,” Fahey said. “I can’t wait to see what they do in the rest of their seasons. The thing is, every other program on campus has that same potential. My big thing when I work with coaches is that I want to provide them with a path to success. With each sport, that path will look a little different, but the end goal is the same and that is to win.”

GWU does not currently support a NIL collective, but Fahey says that could be one of the stepping stones on that path in the future.

“It’s possible,” he said. “Right now, it’s more important to be listening and learning. There is a great foundation in place and we do want to take things to a higher level, but we have to do it in a way that makes sense for the university as a whole. We have to do our due diligence before making any decision long-term like that, because the NCAA and the games are changing all the time.”

With the changing landscape of college athletics, Fahey adds that he will try his best to keep GWU on sure footing as it walks along the path and climbs higher.

“Health in any athletic department or university starts with a strong culture,” he said. “We have that strong culture. Now it’s my job as athletic director to advocate for the resources needed to compete at a high level, win championships and have the best student-athlete experience possible. We also have to realize that the state of college athletics is very fluid right now. We have to judge every decision not only through the lens of athletics, but what is best for the institution as a whole.”

Fahey is ready for that challenge, however.

“I’m so excited and ready to go,” he said. “There are a lot of great people and so much potential here. I can’t wait to get to work.”