Bio

Phil Milbrath enters his seventh year at Tech and was recently promoted to Assistant Head Coach/ Special Teams Coordinator for the Michigan Tech football program in 2023-24. Milbrath was a standout running back for the Huskies from 2007-10 and is one of the program's all-time leading rushers.

"Phil Milbrath is a tremendous addition to the staff as the running backs coach. He has worked with Coach Mettlach so he has a great perspective of our offense from coaching in the system and having played here at Michigan Tech. Milbrath is also a strong recruiter and will recruit Highway 2 in the U.P from Ironwood to Powers and then south to Menominee. In addition, he will recruit Northern Wisconsin and Western Wisconsin along with the Twin Cities. We are excited to add Phil to our staff and in addition to coaching the running backs, he will assist with our special teams."

Milbrath, who hails from Norway, Michigan, returned to Michigan Tech after serving as the Assistant Athletic Director at NCAA Division III Finlandia University in Hancock. Milbrath was a graduate assistant, strength and conditioning coach, and an athletic department intern at Tech prior to going to Finlandia. Milbrath worked primarily with football, basketball, volleyball, and hockey during his time with the Huskies.

"I would like to thank Suzanne Sanregret, Steve Olson, and the rest of the Michigan Tech football staff for allowing me an opportunity to come back and be a part of their program," Milbrath said. "Michigan Tech was home to me for almost seven years and it's a tremendous honor to be back. My experience playing football at Michigan Tech was great and I hope that I can help young student-athletes have the same experience and success that I was able to have. I would also like to thank those at Finlandia for the past three years. I gained a lot of valuable experience and made a lot of good friends there, but It's good to be back home."

As player at Tech, Milbrath earned numerous honors for his achievements on the field and in the classroom. He was a two-time Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference All-Conference selection (2008, 2010), GLIAC Offensive Back of the Year (2010), first-team NCAA Division II All-American (2010), and a national finalist for the Harlon Hill Award (2010) which goes to the top player in Division II each season. Milbrath was a College Sports Information Directors of America Academic All-District honoree (2010) and named to the GLIAC All-Academic Team (2008, 2009, 2010).

Milbrath ranks fourth in the Michigan Tech record books for career rushing yards after piling up 3,934 during his four-year career. He carried the ball 690 times, averaged 5.7 yards per carry, and scored 44 touchdowns. He is also fourth in career scoring with 51 total touchdowns and 308 points while ranking 11^th all-time in total offense.

Milbrath led the Huskies in rushing yards during the 2008 and 2010 seasons thanks to 1,343 and 1,412 yards respectively. His 21 touchdowns during the 2008 campaign ranks second all-time for a single season in Tech history. He paced the GLIAC that year in yards rushing per game (134.3) and scoring (12.8 points per game) which was third best in all of NCAA Division II.

Milbrath earned his bachelor's degree in sports management from Michigan Tech in 2011 and secured his MBA in 2013.