Dick Harmon: BYU-bound Mika playing two seasons in one

Mika attended Waterford and played for that school in Sandy as a freshman and sophomore. He lived in Lone Peak boundaries all his life, but when he established eligibility at Waterford, it chained him. His family appealed his case, citing a hardship because Mika would go to early morning seminary, attend school and then stay late for practice from 5-7 p.m. daily at Waterford. He even got in an accident making the long daily commute. The UHAA denied him his junior year. He even lost a lawsuit filed in district court over the matter.

So, from discouraged sitting to adrenalized running and jumping, this season is a very big deal to this kid.

BYU signed five recruits in November from the Class of 2013 that included Mika and Luke Worthington from Wisconsin. Both will play next year and fill a void left by Brandon Davies. Three others, Mika’s teammate Nick Emery, Braiden Shaw of Eagle High in Idaho and Jakob Hartsock of Oklahoma will go directly on church missions.

But for now, Mika is on his own mission, making up for a lost junior season.

And doing it very well.

Dick Harmon, Deseret News sports columnist, can be found on Twitter as Harmonwrites and can be contacted at dharmon@desnews.com.