After transferring from Southeastern Illinois College, Mike earned letters in both basketball and baseball during his two years at McKendree. He is a member of the Bearcats’ 1,000-point club with 1,386, a total that ranks him third among two-year players. During his junior year, Mike scored 703 points, including a 40-point game against SIU-Edwardsville. He is one of only eight Bearcat basketball players to have scored 40 or more points in one game. Mike averaged 26 points per game and 12.3 rebounds per game in his time at McKendree. He is a two-time NAIA All-American, NAIA District 20 First-Team selection, and Bearcat MVP.

After graduating from McKendree, Mike was a junior high teacher and coach at Ridgway (IL) and Gallatin County (IL) for 26 years as well as High School Principal at Gallatin County for seven years. He earned a Masters in Educational Administration from Eastern Illinois University in 1997. Mike was also inducted into the Southeastern Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005.