If you had asked head coach Pat Behrns about senior tight end Mike Higgins when he showed up to campus as a freshmen there would have been reservations.

“I did not imagine this kind of success for Mike,” Behrns said. “I had an initial hesitation about him physically.”

However, in the three seasons since Higgins’ potential came with questions, he has become the premier tight end in Division II football. Looking at Higgins’ numbers from last year alone would provide enough evidence that he is a very special player.

Last year, Higgins put up 50 catches, 848 yards and nine touchdowns. Those kinds of numbers made him a second team All-American by Consensus Draft Services, a Daktronics NCAA Division II All Super Region Four First Team selection, a first team all-MIAA selection and a 2010 pre-season All-American.

Yet with all the athletic attention, it’s more about what makes up Mike Higgins as a person that makes him special.

“Mike is one of those guys that knows what’s important,” Behrns said. “He knows where school is, he knows where football is, he has it figured out.”

It’s that focus as a student-athlete that earned Higgins a nomination for the MIAA Conference Ken B. Jones Award earlier this summer. The award is presented to a male and female athlete for season-long and career achievement on the field of play, in the classroom and in the community.

Outside of football Higgins has interned with a local engineering firm, spent time in the community helping out organizations that work with Habitat for Humanity, and achieved great success in the classroom, earning a 3.96 GPA last fall.

Talking to Mike Higgins, it’s apparent why coach Behrns has such a high opinion of him.

When asked about how he feels about himself as a player and his success, Higgins doesn’t rest on his achievements.

“I’m really grateful that the good Lord has blessed me and I’m grateful to be given the opportunity every day to do the things that I get to do,” Higgins said. “Coach Behrns and the coaching staff have helped me to focus on the tasks in front of me, not to worry about the past or the future but to live in the moment and take advantage of what you have.”

The Maverick coaching staff can tell you that Higgins takes advantage of the opportunities presented to him.

“Mike is always in the front of the line at practice and ready to lead during a game,” Behrns said. “When Mike sets his mind on doing something, he can do it.”

Some of the reason for his success can be attributed to the fine balance he has had to make between being a successful student and a successful football player.

“Learning as a civil engineering student and playing football helps you balance time and focus on what’s the most efficient,” said Higgins.”The mindset of an engineer is that of being efficient, finding the best way to do something.”

All things considered though, Higgins isn’t about to rest on his laurels.

“I’ve been fighting to put weight on, trying to stay big and strong, especially with my upper body,” he said.

Yet as much as Higgins feels he needs to grow, there will still be dependency on him as a major facet of the passing game. This is especially true since the Mavs are searching for a new starting quarterback this fall. A position that, currently, is as even as it gets between the two competing for the job.

Despite the uncertainty, Higgins remains the constant in the program.

“Mike is intelligent, he’s athletic; it’s difficult to find a lot of flaws about him besides his beard,” said Behrns.

Not only has Higgins balanced the time that football and school require, he also got married this summer. While most college students aspire for graduation, a potential career and all the things that go with life after college, Mike Higgins has put himself in a position to achieve success now.

Higgins, though, keeps himself focused on the task at hand.

“If the opportunity came to play at the next level I’d jump at it,” he said. “But I’m not gonna worry too much about that. I’m focusing on the season ahead and what we need to get done.”

The sky is the limit for Mike Higgins as a UNO football player, a Maverick student and anything he sets his mind to after that.