Coach Dave Barnett

Coaching Experience
• Head Coach, Flagler College (1988-present)
• Assistant Coach, University of Iowa (1984-86)

Education
• B.S., Physical Education, Flagler College, 1983
• M.A., Educational Administration, University of Iowa, 1985

Coaching at Flagler
Dave Barnett, Flagler Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2016, begins his 35th season as head coach of the Flagler baseball program. Already the winningest coach in the program's history, Barnett's overall record stands at 982-791. He ranks No. 12 in wins among active NCAA Division II coaches. Barnett was inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame on Jan. 7, 2022.

The Saints were co-champions of the Peach Belt Conference in 2019, which was the first time a Flagler baseball team won or shared a league title. The school hosted the conference tournament for the second year in a row. The 19 conference wins was the most the program has had since joining the PBC and was the most since 1993. Aaron Anderson earned first-team all-conference honors as well as wining the Elite 15 award for having the highest GPA among the other players on teams in the tournament. Anderson also took home Google Cloud Academic All-America honors. Robert Girgis also earned first-team all-conference accolades and Sean Lawlor brought home second-team honors.   

In 2018, Flagler hosted the Peach Belt Conference Tournament for the first time and went 1-2. The Saints tied for sixth place wit a 16-14 record and held a 31-22 overall mark. Dillon Reed earned all-conference honors for the Saints. Flagler swept then No.-23 North Georgia and also posted a win at No. 11 Columbus State. 

In 2017, the Saints were one game shy of playing for the Peach Belt Conference Tournament title and was led by Dylan Jones who broke a school and conference record with 27 doubles. Flagler has strung together three consecutive 30+ win seasons, which is the first time that has happened in the program since the late 1990s and early 2000s.

The 2016 campaign saw the Saints finish with a 30-20 overall record and a 16-14 mark in the Peach Belt. Flagler swept a three-game series from No. 17 Columbus State University and knocked off No. 7 Florida Southern College. The Saints also took two-of-three from No. 20 USC Aiken as well as the eventual national champion - Nova Southeastern University. Michael Maiocco earned all-region honors as well as academic all-district and academic all-America accolades. Kolin McMillen earned all-conference and all-region merits.  

Barnett guided Flagler to one of its best seasons ever in 2015. The Saints finished 32-15 and qualified for the Peach Belt Conference Tournament for the second time since joining the league in 2009. Flagler posted a 24-3 record to open the year, its best start since 2001. The Saints were nationally ranked for 11 consecutive weeks and peaked at No. 8 (March 23). Flagler had a record five academic all-conference selection and had four all-conference honors including the league's pitcher of the year, Mike O'Reilly.

In Flagler's inaugural season in the Peach Belt (2010), Barnett's team finished the season with a 29-23 overall record and a 14-10 mark in league play. The Saints finished third in the East Division and beat No. 18 North Georgia in the first round of the conference tournament.  

Prior to joining NCAA Division II and the Peach Belt, Barnett's teams qualified for conference and regional play 16-out-of-the-20 years as a member of the NAIA. The highest ranking the Saints achieved was No. 3 in the 2003 poll. The Saints were a game away from the NAIA World Series, finishing as runners-up in the regionals, in 1993 and 2002.

During Barnett’s tenure, 49 players have signed professional contracts. He has also seen three former players drafted in the first 10 rounds: Jim Woodrow by the San Francisco Giants in the fifth round (1995), Lonny Landry by the Detroit Tigers in the ninth round (1993) and Andrew "Opie" Brodbeck by the St. Louis Cardinals in the ninth round (2015). Chris Barnwell, a 25th Round selection of the Milwaukee Brewers in 2002, was the first Flagler player to reach the Major Leagues. Kyle Bird became the second Flagler player to reach the Majors when he pitched on opening day for the Texas Rangers in 2019. Barnett has also coached numerous players who have garnered all-conference and all-America honors. 



Prior to Flagler
Barnett has the unique distinction of playing and coaching at every level of the game. In 1983, he started his coaching career at Jacksonville's Episcopal High. After graduating with a bachelor's from Flagler, Barnett then served as an assistant at the University of Iowa (1984-86) while obtaining a master's in educational administration. He then moved back to Florida to assist at Valencia Community College. From there he was a coach at the Boardwalk & Baseball facility in Haines City, Florida before accepting the head coaching position at Flagler in 1987. In the summer of 2002 and 2003, Barnett served as the manager of the Vermont Expos, a Class A affiliate of the Montreal Expos in the New York-Penn League. He also has international coaching experience as he assisted a group of collegiate players participating in Holland as part of the Dutch Haarlem Baseball Week. Barnett was the head coach of a group of high school all-stars who toured and competed against teams throughout Italy. 

As a collegiate player, he played at Seminole Community College in Sanford, Fla., before transferring to the University of North Carolina. He led the Tar Heels in batting average in 1978 and helped lead the team to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska where they finished in third place. Barnett signed a free agent contract with the Montreal Expos, and after one season he joined the world famous four-man fast-pitch softball team, "The King & His Court," which featured the legendary Eddie Feigner. He barnstormed the world from 1980-83, and again in 1988, as the team's shortstop.

From 1994-2009, Barnett served the dual role of athletics director and baseball coach at Flagler. During his 15 years as athletics director, Flagler added women's golf, women's soccer and fast-pitch softball to the athletics program. He oversaw the construction of the baseball stadium (2000), the softball stadium (2008) and major renovations to the soccer field and Flagler Gym. During his tenure as athletics director, the program won two Florida Sun Conference Commissioner's Cups and Barnett was named NAIA Region XIV Athletics Director of the Year in 2001. He was instrumental in Flagler's transition to NCAA Division II. 

Barnett has been a featured clinician at the Florida High School Coaches Association’s clinics numerous times. He has also spoke at the Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Maryland state coaches clinics. Barnett has been a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) for 34 years. He was inducted into the St. Augustine/St. Johns County Hall of Fame in 2008.   

Personal
Barnett lives in St. Augustine with his wife, Tina. They have two grown children, Chelsi and Tyler. Chelsi is a graduate of Florida Southern College in Lakeland and is a practicing registered nurse at Flagler Hospital while Tyler, a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University, was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 21st Round in 2008. Tyler and his wife Avery have two children, Brooks and Lucy.