August 19th, 2026
Football Sounds with Mike Branch
Mike Branch (MB), the Head Coach of the Boston Bandits, fuses game-day intensity with deep-rooted team culture to build a winning program. Standing at the intersection of sideline leadership and personal inspiration, Branch uses sound as both a motivational blueprint and a bridge to his son Jalen who stars as strong safety. He recently sat down with Kevin Small Jr. (KSJ), the Founder & President of SNAKE Magazine, to discuss the soundtrack driving his locker room and the music that defines him and the Bandits' legacy.
KSJ: HOW DOES YOUR MUSIC AS HEAD COACH DIFFER FROM WHAT THE PLAYERS OF THE BOSTON BANDITS CONSUME?
MB: Well, even though I'm turning 55, I try to stay up-to-date with the current music, and I would say, believe it or not, my list is very similar besides a couple of OGs like Boosie Badazz, “Set It Off,” 'cause we know that we in the game about to set that shit off! There are songs I have vs. them. But in terms of practice, a lot of this new rapper stuff is the singing stuff. We joke about it 'cause I like stuff that keeps me more motivated, and some of the new lyrics are not motivating to get you fired up, where NBA YoungBoy fires you up. There are some new current songs that fire you up. So yes, I would say for an older coach--I'm about to turn double nickels--I still try to trend on the young age as far as current music, and I would have to attribute that to having a current subscription to Sirius Radio.
KSJ: ANY SONGS THAT REPRESENT THE LEGACY OF THE BOSTON BANDITS THE BEST?
MB: That's a great question. I’ll probably have to get back to you on that one because that's a solid question. Not off the top of my head; I'd probably have to think about it. But, I would say anything that accounts for consistency, longevity, and a solid product.
KSJ: YOUR SON JALEN PLAYS STRONG SAFETY FOR THE TEAM, ONE OF YOUR BETTER PLAYERS. HOW HAS YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM CHANGED SINCE HE JOINED THE TEAM?
MB: First of all, Jalen is a hell of a player, probably one of the smartest players. He's gonna be a better coach than I am. He's well-rounded. He's been around the Boston Bandits since he was young, so when I played. He always had an IQ of football, probably higher than a lot of other people. I coached him tough in Pop Warner. I didn't show any favoritism to my kid--I didn't believe in that. I still coach him probably tougher than any other player because we have expectations. An example would be, we had a play where in the first game, he made a pick, and it was fourth down, and I yelled at him because the ball should've been batted down. I'm always gonna be tougher on him than probably a lot of other players, but the type of person he is and type of player he is, it's gonna help him in the long run. He currently coaches at Catholic Memorial right now, and he already has a state title and I don't. So he's actually well on his way to be better than me, and that's what my job as a parent is: to make sure that our kids are better than us, and they're well-rounded. But I think him being around the Bandits at an age of four and five, he's been around the game. He's been around the players. He's been around the organization. So it's kind of easy for him to transition because he knew what the expectations were, because we were winning back then, and we had tough practices where he used to be at. So it's an easy transition because he knows what to expect out of me and out of the organization.
KSJ: DO YOU AND JALEN SHARE ANY MUSIC? DO YOU ALL HAVE A FAVORITE SONG TOGETHER THAT MAYBE BRINGS UP GREAT FOOTBALL MEMORIES?
MB: No, because like I said, during the season I kind of keep it the player/coach, you know? We don't even ride to games together, even though we come out of the same household; we still have that separation where we have that different respect as player/coach, father/son. So are there any common songs like that? Not, not off the top of my head. We both like rap music. Some of the stuff I would still heat on, because I'll mix some of the old school rap with some of the new school rap. So he'll clearly flip my playlist if I'm in his car or if he's using my car. So do we have a common song that we have together? I would say no.
KSJ: IN REGARDS TO MUSIC, WHAT DO YOU WANT PEOPLE TO REMEMBER ABOUT YOU THE MOST? EVEN AS A COACH, WHAT SHOULD YOUR MUSIC LEGACY BE?
MB: I would say anything that attributes to energy, character, sacrifice, commitment to the organization, dedication. Because again, we've been around. We're not paid for this, you know? It's just the work you gotta put in and the love of the game. I take it seriously. I frown upon the teams that don't take it seriously and get us characterized as 37U. I don't wanna be known as that 37U crap that you see on the reels of TikTok with the saxophone behind it. When I hear that, it's even more motivation to make our product better. And you've been around us, Kev. You see when you pull up to a game, every helmet's the same color. Everyone's gonna have the same color socks. You know we're not into that different stuff. We're gonna be classy. We're gonna be an organization, and we're gonna handle it off and off the field. I like to help build characters on the team. I see myself as a little mentor and a coach. If we can help people in any of their professional goals, we do so. Letters of recommendation, help people get into certain fields--we're gonna do it. Because for us over here at the Bandits, it's not just football; it's a brotherhood.