PBR Names Phil Haig As New Texas Scouting Director

Prep Baseball Report is thrilled to announce Phil Haig as its new Texas Scouting Director. Haig comes to Prep Baseball Report with a decorated resume that includes serving as the pitching coach at the University of Texas for the last three years. Having coached at the Division 1 level for over six years in Texas, Haig has a wealth of knowledge in the state, which he will now bring to all corners of Texas.

Haig will provide a seamless transition from former PBR Texas Scouting Director Toby Bicknell, who moved on to become an assistant coach at the University of Charlotte.

“I couldn’t be more excited to have Phil Haig on board,” said Prep Baseball Report President Sean Duncan. “With Phil’s knowledge of the state, his baseball experiences, both as a coach and as a high-level athlete, the state of Texas is in good hands.

“Toby Bicknell did an amazing job for us in Texas. I am proud to call him my friend and someone who served in our trenches. With that said, Phil Haig is a stud of a human - intelligent, personable, highly competitive, successful - and I am super-pumped that he is part of our team and our leader in arguably the best baseball state in the country.” 

A former collegiate pitcher, Haig has served the last eight seasons on staff at Texas, Tulane and Sam Houston State. Haig spent the last three years as pitching coach for the Longhorns, helping guide Texas to a College World Series berth in 2018. Before Texas, Haig spent the previous two seasons as a volunteer coach at Tulane, where he assisted David Pierce with the pitching staff. While there, he helped the Green Wave to back-to-back NCAA Regional appearances.

In 2016, Haig played a large part in guiding Tulane to an NCAA-best 13 shutouts, setting a single-season school record, surpassing its nine in 2015, Haig’s first season at Tulane. The 2015 Green Wave pitching staff was one of the best in the nation.

Prior to Tulane, he spent three years as Pierce’s volunteer coach at Sam Houston State. In each season with the Bearkats, Haig helped SHSU to the Southland Conference title and an NCAA Regional appearance.

Before starting his collegiate coaching career with the Bearkats in 2012, Haig spent the 2011 season as a left-handed pitcher at Florida International University after sitting out the 2010 season due to transfer rules. While at FIU, he led the Golden Panthers in wins (nine), innings pitched (99.1) and strikeouts (72). His 9-4 record helped FIU to a 40-20-1 record and an NCAA Regional Appearance.

From 2008 to 2009, Haig was a dual-sport athlete at the University of Illinois, where he lettered in both football and baseball. During his sophomore season with the Fighting Illini, Haig went 7-3 in 82.1 innings, leading the team in wins. As a freshman, he finished the season with a 2-3 record in 36.1 innings, earning Big 10 Pitcher of the Week honors during the final week of the regular season.

Haig was also a backup quarterback for the 2008 Fighting Illini football team that competed in the school's first Rose Bowl since 1984.

A Minnesota native, Haig was a five-sport athlete at Henry Sibley High School, where he earned a total of 10 all-conference honors: three in baseball, three in tennis, two in football and one each in wrestling and basketball. He earned three all-state baseball selections, while also receiving high national rankings from major recruiting services for his work as a quarterback.

Now Haig will bring his vast baseball experiences and passions for scouting to Texas’ prep baseball scene. He will work tirelessly to bring to you the most comprehensive high school baseball information Texas has seen and provide scouting coverage to all corners of the state.

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