There have been many football players honored over the years, but this year’s honoree is truly one of the very best ever to lace up a pair of spikes for the Howland Tigers.
Born in Warren, he is a 1973 HHS graduate where he starred at running back for three seasons under the watchful eye of head coach Jack Pierson.
A three-year starter and letterwinner, he played defensive back, too, as a sophomore and not only did he start that first varsity season, but he was also the second leading tackler on defense en route to First-Team All-Steel Valley Conference laurels.
The team went 8-2 in 1970 then the following year, he made a smooth transition to tailback on a full time basis and was the featured back in Pierson’s high octane offense.
He led the team in rushing and was the focal point when then Tigers had the ball, helping the team to a 7-3 overall mark.
His senior season was what most scholastic players dream of for he led the Tigers in rushing a second straight season, made big plays when the game was on the line and helped the team to an 8-1-1 ledger.
After his senior campaign, he was honored with selection to the All-SVC, All-County and All-Northeastern Ohio teams at running back and was a big part of the reason the team went 23-6-1 during his three varsity seasons, a sparkling .833 winning percentage in 30 games played.
“Mike was a versatile athlete at Howland High School, playing several sports for the Tigers,” noted James Cullinan of the Howland H.S. Athletics Hall of Fame. On the junior varsity basketball team, he was the shutdown defender long before Gary Payton became known as ’The Glove’ because he, too, could cover his man like a glove.
“Mike’s final season was also the initial season of the OHSAA (Ohio High School Athletic Association) play-offs. Two teams in the area were stellar that year, cross-town rivals Howland and Warren JFK and they were set to meet in the final game of the season. The Eagles were favored and in a hard-fought, tightly contested game with the outcome still in doubt with just minutes remaining.
“Coach Pierson was hoping to fool the Eagles defenders and called a play with his tailback now the primary receiver. Unfortunately, JFK head coach Tony Napolet’s defenders were well-disciplined and covered Michael. The Tiger quarterback was confident, however, and threw the ball to him despite solid coverage. The two JFK defenders converged and were in excellent position but Michael out-competed them for the ball, made a spectacular catch that secured the Tigers’ upset victory to deny the Eagles a play-off berth.”
Upon graduation, he played at the University of Mount Union for four years – he earned three letters for the Purple Raiders, was strictly a running back as a sophomore and junior then became the featured wide receiver his senior campaign – under head coach Ken Wable with his running backs coach Larry Kehres, who would later become head coach and is credited as the architect of 11 Division III National Championships.
He helped the team to a 20-16 overall ledger and as members of Ohio Athletic Conference, the team went 6-12 overall.
In 1976, while still at Mount Union and under the guidance Youngstown’s Gary Frost, a former great quarterback for the Purple Raiders, he joined the “Fellowship of Cristian Athletes.”
He earned his undergraduate degree in Business Administration in 1977 and became store manager for K-Mart Stores, a position that he held for 10 years.
He then moved over the finance sector where he spent 17 years with National City, PNC Bank and First Tennessee Bank and Trust of Memphis.
The last 17 years he was with Republic Bank and Trust as vice-president of deposit operations, retiring two years ago.
He and his wife, the former Monica McElroy, are the proud parents of two children, son Matthew (35), a graduate of Morehead State University where he earned his degree in communications, and daughter Mikayla (29), who earned her BA in communications from Northern Kentucky University and MA, also in communications, from Bellarmine University.
He currently resides in Louisville, Kentucky where he volunteers his time working sporting events for the University of Louisville Cardinals’ athletics program.
