Charlie Mikkelsen: A Legendary Coach, An Even Better Mentor

Long before analytics, travel teams, or year-round specialization, Charlie Mikkelsen was teaching something far more enduring in Montague: love of the game, respect for fundamentals, and responsibility to one another.

To the outside world, Charlie Mikkelsen was a legendary coach. To those of us who played for him, learned from him, or simply watched him work, he was something more important. He was a mentor who believed that discipline, preparation, and consistency were acts of respect, both for the game and for the people playing it.

I first met Mr. Mikkelsen in 8th grade science class at Montague NBC Middle School. He was meticulous, direct, and clearly prepared for every minute we spent together. You knew quickly that effort was not optional. Expectations were clear, and excuses were not part of the curriculum.

Later that same year, I had him again, this time as my 8th grade basketball coach. That experience cemented lessons I still carry today.

Charlie was hard, but he was fair. Practices were demanding. Fundamentals were drilled relentlessly. Systems mattered. But if you put in the effort, he put effort into you. He noticed who showed up prepared, who listened, and who worked. And he invested in those kids accordingly.

That season was the first place I truly learned how systems and consistency breed success. Nothing was accidental. Drills were intentional. Repetition was purposeful. Roles were defined. Expectations never shifted based on mood or circumstance. Charlie believed that success came from doing the small things correctly, over and over, long before anyone was watching.

That belief defined his entire coaching philosophy.

As a 1995 Chronicle article noted, Charlie preached fundamentals daily. Two hundred swings a day. Ground balls, ground balls, ground balls. Ninety-nine percent perspiration, one percent luck. He believed talent mattered, but discipline mattered more. He believed effort was teachable, and responsibility was non-negotiable.

His resume alone is remarkable. Charlie Mikkelsen coached Montague baseball across multiple decades, compiling 323 wins and earning induction into the Michigan State High School Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. He coached middle school girls’ basketball for more than 20 years, high school softball, and spent countless hours teaching golf at Lincoln Golf Club. Yet he never chased titles for their own sake. He coached because he loved the game and believed in what it could teach young people.

That love extended beyond the field in unforgettable ways.

One of the most charming stories from the Chronicle captures Charlie perfectly. While courting his wife Jean, baseball trips were part of the relationship. When the couple married in 1979, Charlie famously convinced the minister to include a vow about making bologna sandwiches every Sunday so he could take the ballgame with him. It was practical, humorous, and deeply on-brand. Baseball was never just a job. It was part of life.

So was teaching.

Charlie served 33 years as an educator, teaching in Berrien Springs, Eaton Rapids, Hart, and ultimately Montague. He established Montague’s first Science Fair and ran it for more than two decades. He taught students from sixth grade through high school in subjects ranging from science to social studies, history, and government. He even helped pioneer sex education in Montague during the mid-1970s, because he saw a need and believed students deserved honest, responsible instruction.

Outside the classroom and field, Charlie lived with the same discipline he demanded. He ran miles every morning, maintained a bluebird trail with 50 houses, built birdhouses with students, tended a prolific organic garden, and never stopped learning. Even as he entered his later years, he described himself as “continuing to gain knowledge.”

That mindset defined him as much as any win total.

Charlie Mikkelsen coached because he cared. He taught because he believed preparation was an act of service. He demanded effort because he respected his players and students enough to expect their best.

Montague lost a legendary coach when Charlie passed away at age 91. But his real legacy lives on in the thousands of kids who learned what responsibility looks like, what consistency can build, and what tough but fair love feels like when it is given honestly.

Even decades later, Charlie was still in it for the love of the game.

And for the people the game helped shape.

Service to be held in the spring: Memorial Contributions can be made to Montague Athletic Boosters, c/o MAPS, 4900 Stanton Blvd., Montague Michigan or to Hospice of Michigan, 989 Spaulding SE, Ada, Michigan 49301 or online at www.hom.org/donate. To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

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