Bio

Began: 2019-2020 | Season: 2024 is his 5th season
Overall record at Milligan entering 2023 season: 105-74

Skyler Barnett enters his fifth year as the head coach of the Milligan baseball program. With Barnett at the helm, Milligan has posted four consecutive winning seasons, the longest such streak for Milligan baseball since 1991.

Barnett has led the Buffs to a pair of top-four finishes in the Appalachian Athletic Conference standings and six wins over top-25 ranked opponents. Logan Hullette became the first College Sports Communicators Academic All-America selection in program history in 2023 and is one of 10 players to earn all-conference honors under Barnett.

In 2022, Milligan won 36 games, the second-highest single-season win total in program history. The Buffs logged seven wins over teams receiving votes in the NAIA Top 25 Poll and tied for fourth in the conference standings. In the AAC Tournament, Milligan won a pair of games to mark the Buffs’ deepest run since 2014. Four players collected All-AAC honors, the most in a single season since 2015.

In his first full season, Milligan recorded a 27-23 overall record and fourth-place finish in the Appalachian Athletic Conference standings. The Buffs earned four wins over ranked opponents, including a 2-1 extra-inning victory over No. 1 Tennessee Wesleyan on April 3.

In his first year at the helm of the program, Barnett's team was tied for first place in the AAC and had an overall record of 14-8, winning seven of the team's last nine games before the season was canceled early due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Barnett joined Milligan's athletics staff as head baseball coach in May 2019. A native of Johnson City, Barnett’s last stop before Milligan was at Walters State Community College where he served as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.

Barnett has a wealth of experience in the region and at multiple levels of intercollegiate competition. Prior to serving on Milligan alumnus David Shelton’s staff at Walters State, Barnett served as a volunteer assistant at East Tennessee State University, his alma mater. Prior to ETSU, he was the recruiting coordinator at Carson-Newman University (2015-17) and an assistant coach at Austin Peay State University (2014-15).

Barnett served as a graduate assistant at Lincoln Memorial University from 2013 to 2014, helping the school win the South Atlantic Conference for the first time in 54 years. This followed a successful playing career during his time as a student-athlete at ETSU.

“I’m excited for this opportunity to work for Milligan, a school with a purpose and mission I can get behind,” Barnett said upon the announcement of his hiring. “Growing up in Johnson City, this is a great opportunity for me to come back home, impact lives and help students earn a degree. I’m really looking forward to the opportunity to be here; I believe it’s my calling.”

As a student-athlete at ETSU, Barnett played catcher and served as team captain his senior season (2012), receiving All-Academic honors from the ASUN Conference in his final three seasons. Barnett also was a recipient of the commissioner's medal for academic achievement.

Barnett earned a bachelor's degree in sport management from ETSU in 2012.