Mike Darbee joined the SVSU Swimming and Diving staff in the fall of 2021. He comes from nearby Bay City John Glenn High School, where he served as either head coach or assistant coach for the Glenn girls and boys programs since 1998.

In his first year apart of the Cardinal coaching staff, SVSU finished fourth in the women's team standings with 436 points, while the men were 5th with 391.5 points at the GLIAC Championships hosted by SVSU. Libby Caird was named Women's Diver of the Year by the GLIAC after winning the 1-meter event and finishing runner-up in the 3-meter dive. Adrien McGill was the Men's GLIAC Diver of the Year after sweeping the 1-meter and 3-meter diving titles. The Cardinals broke 14 school records at the GLIAC Championships. Caird, McGill, and Adelaide Spencer all qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships. Caird earned Honorable Mention All-American honors in both the 1-meter and 3-meter dives, and McGill earned Honorable Mention All-American in the 3-meter dive.  

Darbee was first an all-state swimmer at Glenn under his father Bob and then a coach for teams that captured 19 league championships for the girls and 15 titles for the boys. Glenn has routinely produced state-qualifying swimmers under Darbee and sent them on to the collegiate level. 

Darbee was a standout swimmer under his legendary father at Glenn. He earned all-state honors while setting area records in the 100-yard freestyle and 200 IM at the 1988 MHSAA Class A state finals. He shattered every individual school record except for diving and 100-yard breaststroke, was a six-time Tri-Cities champion and a seven-time Independent Swim Conference champion.

He went on to compete for four seasons at Michigan State University, helping the Spartans to a 12th place finish in the NCAA Championships. Darbee was inducted into the Bay County Sports Hall of Fame in 2015. He was also a physical education and health teacher at Bangor West Elementary School prior to joining the Cardinals. 

Coach Darbee lives in Bay City with his wife Stacy and three daughters, Kimble, Kaylene and Jayna.