Justin Haire
Head Coach
The Buckeyes went 30-25 overall, and 18-12 in Big Ten play, in Haire's second season in Columbus in 2026. It was a 17-game turnaround from season one, which was the biggest win turnaround for the program in over 30 years. 2026 was a historic season for the Buckeyes, as they secured their first series sweep of Nebraska in program history, their first series sweep of Michigan in Ann Arbor since 1994 and their first back-to-back Big Ten series sweeps since 2009. The team's 18 conference wins are tied for the fifth-most in program history and the team's combined 78 home runs are the fourth-most in program history. Ohio State won nine series' during the season, which was the most series victories since 2018. The Buckeyes secured the No. 6 seed in the Big Ten Tournament in Omaha to close out the season. Mason Eckelman was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the eighth round of the 2026 MLB Draft, and Henry Kaczmar, who set the single-season program doubles record with 26, signed a free agent deal with the Mariners. Kaczmar, Eckelman and Dane Harvey, who tied the single-season home runs record with 19, earned All-Big Ten recognition and Kaczmar and Harvey were ABCA/Rawlings All-Region selections.
Haire earned his first win at the helm of the Ohio State program on Feb. 21, 2025 as the Buckeyes downed No. 12 NC State, 8-3. More ranked wins came for the Buckeyes as they took two out of three games from No. 10 Oregon in a Big Ten series at Bill Davis Stadium in March. 12 players earned Academic All-Big Ten honors at the conclusion of the season and three players (Luke Carrell, Nik Copenhaver, Hunter Shaw) earned CSC Academic All-District honors. Blaine Wynk was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the eighth round of the 2025 MLB Draft and Tyler Pettorini signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Haire brings a proven history of success to Columbus. Twenty-seven of Haire’s players have been selected in the MLB Draft, which includes three first-round picks and 12 players selected in the top 10 rounds. Forty-four of his players have signed professional contracts with MLB organizations and eight have gone on to make their MLB debuts.
Haire came to Columbus after serving as the head coach at Campbell for 10 seasons. He won 317 games while at the helm of the Camels’ program, averaging over 30 wins per season. He was named the Big South Coach of the Year four times (2018, 2021, 2022, 2023). Haire led the Camels to five consecutive Big South regular season titles from 2018-23 and four Big South Tournament titles (2018, 2019, 2022, 2023). Haire and the Camels reached five NCAA Regionals and won seven NCAA Tournament games.He has coached three Big South Players of the Year, three Big South Pitchers of the Year, four Big South Rookies of the Year, and 10 All-Americans.
Before being named the head coach at Campbell in June 2014, Haire spent seven seasons with the Camels serving in various roles including recruiting coordinator, assistant coach, and associate head coach.
Haire is known for his consistent and explosive offenses and in his 17 total seasons at Campbell, the Camels set over 50 individual and team offensive records.
Prior to Campbell, Haire spent four years as an assistant at Ouachita Baptist University and one season as the pitching coach at Sterling College.
Haire’s ties to Ohio are strong; he played at Bowling Green for two seasons and was part of the 2001 MAC East Division Champion team. He finished his collegiate playing career at the University of Indianapolis. Haire was raised in Hamilton, Ohio from the time he was a young child, and he graduated from Stephen T. Badin High School.
Haire earned a degree in history from Henderson State University. Haire and his wife Lindsey have four children; Jackson, Parker, Max, and Anne Marie.
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