Excellence Without Resources
Snipes was candid about the structural challenges Miles College continues to face, despite its success on the field.
“We’re not state funded,” he said. “If we get uniforms, if we get instruments, it’s from fundraising.”
Yet winning Band of the Year has opened doors that previously felt closed.
“This was the first time in almost 12 years we were able to purchase new uniforms,” Snipes said. “We bought an ATV so we don’t have to carry water to the field anymore.”
The exposure also brought unexpected affirmation.
“I was on an airplane, and a lady I’d never met said, ‘You’re the band I saw on TV yesterday,’” he said. “That’s what ESPN does. That’s national.”
Still, Snipes returned repeatedly to the need for facilities and long-term investment.
“I just want a band room,” he said plainly. “My students deserve that.”
The High School Connection
Cedric Young, whose Westlake High School program won the high school division, framed the event as part of a larger pipeline that feeds HBCU bands.
“This didn’t start this year,” Young said. “It started years ago.”
Young emphasized that Westlake’s success reflects a broader community effort involving parents, administrators, and students.
“We didn’t accomplish this on our own,” he said. “It takes support behind the scenes.”
The national exposure was unprecedented.
“There’s no way we could have paid for ten minutes on ESPN,” Young said. “That’s priceless for a high school program.”
For students, the experience was transformative.
“They got to see college band directors up close,” Young said. “They heard that brass sound in person. That motivates them.”
HBCU Respect Over Rivalry
Despite representing different levels and traditions within HBCU band culture, the directors repeatedly returned to one idea: respect must outweigh rivalry.
“We gotta do better,” Taylor said. “Instead of tearing each other down, we gotta lift each other up.”
Snipes pointed to a past era when respect crossed institutional lines more freely.
“I saw a picture of Isaac Greggs wearing a Grambling jacket,” he said. “If I did that today, I’d be dead to the band world.”
For Snipes, that shift is troubling.
“We’ve created a hate mentality,” he said. “And it’s not cool.”
More Than a Trophy
In the end, the directors agreed that Band of the Year is valuable not because of who wins—but because of what it exposes.
“This was bigger than a trophy,” Taylor said. “It was about joy. I don’t think I’ve ever seen my students with that much joy.”
Snipes framed it more bluntly.
“Let Miles be your testimony that the underdog is never counted out,” he said.
In a culture where HBCU bands carry history, pride, and expectation all at once, the conversation revealed something deeper than competition: a shared belief that the work matters, even when recognition lags behind effort.
As Snipes put it, “Run your race. And you’ll be amazed where the end result takes you.”