1979 TO 1997
COACH BASS IN THE BAHAMAS
Eighteen years in Freeport, Grand Bahama, built around football, mentorship, and a community Mike still calls home.
FREEPORT, GRAND BAHAMA
A SECOND HOME.
In 1979, after nearly a decade in the NFL, Mike moved to Freeport on Grand Bahama Island. He had trained there ahead of Washington camps and returned to the welcoming people, sea, and spirit of the island.
When local athlete Sharky Martin asked if he would coach the nearby 8-Mile Rock Crushers, Mike saw a way to give back, teach American football, and keep competing.
THE CRUSHERS
DISCIPLINE BECAME A STANDARD.
With the 8-Mile Rock Crushers, Mike led the team to several Bahamas American Football League championships against clubs in Freeport and Nassau. His approach came from his first NFL coach, Vince Lombardi: know your assignment, respect opponents and teammates, and be accountable.
The rule was simple: no practice, no play. The younger players embraced it, earned their opportunity, and developed into exceptional players. Two Crushers, Sinclair Knowles and Joey Wildgoose, earned scholarships to U.S. colleges.
THE GUINNESS TITANS
FROM BOYS TO MEN.
After leaving the Crushers, Mike formed the Guinness Titans in Freeport. Players joined a program centered on fundamentals, conditioning, discipline, assignments, and eliminating mental mistakes.
In just their second year, the Titans won the BAFL championship in Nassau over a team that had beaten them earlier in the season. For Mike, the deeper reward was seeing young athletes grow into men and carry those lessons forward.
THE MEN WHO MADE IT MATTER
TEAMMATES FOR LIFE.
Mike remembers Titans players including James Kemp, Craig Simms, Stanford Duhaney, Keith Knowles, Franklyn “Pilli” Thomas, Sammy Davis, Peter Curry, Angelo Capron, and “Grumps” Basden. Among the Crushers were Sharky Martin, Joey Wildgoose, Pat and Phil Grant, Phil Hepburn, Rex Russell, Kevin Grant, Kenny Martin, Sinclair Knowles, McArthur Rigby, Jessup Johnson, Tom Martin, John Hanna, Ben Beneby, and Cess Grant.
RETURNING TO FREEPORT
THE HONOR CAME HOME.
In 1997, Mike returned to the United States and settled in Gainesville, Florida. In 2023, former players welcomed him back to Freeport to honor his contribution to American football on Grand Bahama.
Mike considers that reunion one of the highlights of his life, alongside his Washington Ring of Fame induction. As he puts it, “The only thing about me that is not Bahamian is my accent.”
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