Mike Higgins: Life On and Off the Court

Mike Higgins doesn’t remember every point he scored or every win he had during his basketball career, but he’ll never forget a New Year’s Eve in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, one he spent hanging out with his teammates without the pressures of the game. For Higgins, the most meaningful memories from his playing days weren’t about the big wins. They were about the road trips, the hard practices and the friendships built through everyday struggles. His story shows that for many athletes, it’s not just the game that matters, it’s the people and moments along the way.

Born in Grand Island, Nebraska, Higgins moved to Greeley, where he graduated from Greeley West High School before playing college basketball at the University of Northern Colorado from 1985 to 1989. While the University of Wyoming and Colorado State University encouraged him to spend a few years at a junior college first, one coach saw his potential and believed in him from the very start. That coach was Ron Brillhart, someone who became more than a mentor for Higgins.

“He was the kind of coach who always pushed me to be tougher and work harder, saying I could achieve more if I put in the effort,” Higgins said. “At first, that wasn’t me, but he kept pushing, and he ended up being a huge influence in my life.”

After a standout freshman season, Wyoming and Colorado State circled back, hoping to convince Higgins to transfer. But for him, the decision was simple.

“They told me they had been interested for a while, but my coach believed in me when nobody else did. Why would I leave that?” Higgins said.

With that loyalty, Higgins had a remarkable college career at UNC. Playing power forward, he was named All-Conference all four years. He was also a key player on the 1988–89 team that finished 24–6 and earned a share of the North Central Conference title. To this day, Higgins remains UNC’s top rebounder and blocker with 959 rebounds and 302 blocks, and the second all-time leading scorer with 2,112 points.

Higgins’ legacy carried him across the globe. During his time overseas, he played in countries such as Spain, Japan, Argentina and others. Each destination introduced new languages, cultures and challenges. There were seasons Higgins barely played, teams that misunderstood who he was and many moments of solitude before phones and the internet made the world feel smaller. Yet it was in those quiet, difficult moments that he grew the most.

“When you’re in a foreign country with no one to call and no idea what you’re doing, you learn who you are real fast,” Higgins said.

With every team and season, Higgins leaned into a new version of himself. What started as uncertainty turned into a twenty-year adventure where he didn’t just grow as a player, but discovered who he was outside the game.

The lessons Higgins learned from his career went far past the game and served as powerful guidelines for his life:

● Showing up: Giving 100% every day, even if it doesn’t always look the same.

● Holding yourself accountable: Owning actions and decisions on and off the court.

● Being OK with not having it all figured out: Enjoy the process through the highs and lows.

Greeley was always home for Higgins, where he eventually became both a high school girls' basketball coach and a real estate agent in the community. Higgins has one daughter, whom he coached for part of her high school basketball career. As a coach, Higgins emphasized principles of effort, consistency and finding joy. Maya Burkholder, a junior at Northridge High School, says that Mike always made practice fun.

“I can always count on Mike to make jokes to lift me up on a bad day,” Burkholder said. “He always made basketball more than just a sport.”

Higgins knew when to be funny and when to provide guidance. Jilliyn Fulton, a freshman at Colorado State University, recalls her time playing basketball at Northridge as an experience she will always remember.

"Mike had a huge impact on me during my sophomore year because it was the first year I started on varsity, which was nerve-wracking," Fulton said. "He had confidence in me, even when I lacked it in myself."

Before his jersey hung in Butler-Hancock Athletic Center at the University of Northern Colorado, and before he played professionally overseas, Mike Higgins was just a skinny kid from Greeley with a passion for basketball.

“There are always people who doubt you, everywhere you go,” Higgins said. “You have to have self-belief. It may not be now, but maybe next week. Don’t question it, keep going.”