SAN JOSE — Branham has a new football coach, and it’s someone who is intimately familiar with the program.
Longtime offensive coordinator and former quarterback Tommy McMahon has taken over the head job, Branham announced. McMahon has coached with the Bruins nearly every season since graduating from Branham in 2012.
“It’s good to stay home and take that next step and really try to improve on the culture and whatnot over here,” McMahon told the Bay Area News Group on Tuesday. “Get these guys and everyone in our program, the coaches and the boys, treating football as more than just a game, as really a brotherhood. It’s a culture they should be proud of and a platform they should use to the best of their ability.”
Branham has been an ascendant program recently under longtime coach Stephen Johnson, who stepped down after the team. Johnson took over in 2018 with Branham in the Blossom Valley Athletic League’s Santa Teresa Division and navigated the Bruins up to the top league, the Mt. Hamilton, by his final year in 2024.
Branham finished third in the Mt. Hamilton last year. McMahon, who has been with the program since the Bruins were in the West Valley Division, sees continued success ahead.
“We’re really trying to teach our kids how to lead the way in life,” he said. “That’s what it’s about at the end of the day, using football as a platform to inspire these kids and keep them on the correct path post-high school.”
McMahon began coaching at Branham as a volunteer in 2012, worked at Del Mar in 2013 and returned to Branham as offensive coordinator in 2014. He served in that capacity since then, excluding a two-year break to finish his teaching credential at San Jose State.
Now, it’s his show to run, and it’s one he’s embracing. Even though he’s never been a head coach, McMahon is about as prepared as any coordinator could be to run the Branham program.
“Before this, I didn’t know I was going to be head coaching,” McMahon said. “I was totally cool with being an offensive coordinator. Sometimes when you’re getting complacent, I really, truly believe God does not want you to just sit there and be complacent with where you’re at. And I think that’s why the door opened. It’s a blessing. Super, super appreciative of it.”