Bio

Mike Felsher

Mississippi Gulf Coast Junior College (1964-1966) / Basketball, Track
Biloxi, Mississippi 

In the post-Katrina world that is South Mississippi, being an insurance agent could easily qualify as the most stressful job anyone has. No one knows that better than Mike Felsher. Insurance has been his profession for 30 years, but lately he says, it has been tough. That is why this award is so important to him.

The Biloxi native was part of the 1964-65 basketball team that finished second in the Mississippi Association of Junior Colleges South Division, was a key player in the 1965-66 squad that won a state title for head coach Bob Weathers. As a sophomore, Felsher averaged 19 points per game and also led the team in rebounding. His 15 points in the 1966 state-title game helped Gulf Coast defeat our rival Pearl River 59 -54. “My old high school coach at Biloxi (Bob Garrison) was coaching Pearl River at the time,” he says. “So in a way, it was bittersweet winning that state title game. I knew at the time I was surrounded by good players from different communities. We should’ve won the state title both years. We had some good teams.”

Felsher adds that Weathers was a major influence in his life. “He taught me a lot of life lessons. If you did what he said, you were going to win. To this day, I use some of the lessons he taught me, like to never quit and to give all you’ve got when you’re playing. The games were easy compared to the practices. Playing basketball there was a life-changing event.”

Felsher also ran track in 1966 and won the 440-yard dash at the state meet at Hinds in May of that year. During that meet, he also placed in three other events. “I laugh about that track meet,” he says. “I was in such good shape for basketball season that I didn’t have to train at all. … I just ran a lot. I was in superior shape, and it was a surprise that I beat all those other guys who had been training all year for that event.”

The recognition is also a boost to Felsher not only because of the stress and dealing with insurance after Katrina, but also because he’s a cancer survivor. “Winning this award has really pumped me up. I still run and play tennis. Sports have kept me alive. When you get down, you have to get up and pump yourself up,” he says.

His time at Perk was also important because that’s when he met his wife. “That was a special blessing.”