FIRST THINGS FIRST: Rest in peace, Uncle Phil. Season 100 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) saw San Beda’s seniors and junior’s programs achieve the historic double general championship victories. With the back-to-back feat for the senior’s program given proper praise and flowers, the winningest juniors program in the NCAA struggles to find its place in San Beda University – Manila’s minds and hearts.
San Beda bannering sports programs across different campuses is not unique to our university. Multiple schools in the NCAA and the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) face the same situation in collegiate sports.
“As the current crop of cubs grow and learn, we must do our part in preparing the future leaders of the pride”
However, the great distance between San Beda University’s (SBU) Manila and Rizal campuses divides the student body’s attention. Season 101’s edition of the NCAA basketball tournament embodies the lack of support toward our brothers and sisters from the Rizal campus.
This season’s basketball tournament format sees the juniors and senior’s teams play their respective games on the same day, after each other. Despite this, Red Cubs games are seldom watched by the student body and alumni of SBU – Manila.
As the NCAA season marches on, find time to support all aspects of San Beda sports. The Red Cubs are in the heat of another basketball season, looking to bring back the glory associated with the Red Cubs of yester years.
The different teams of the junior’s program are also in the hunt to replicate last season’s general championship success. The junior’s programs of the Red Paddlers, Red Sealions, and Red Jins look to continue their part in the university’s triple crown achievements.
With the majority of the junior’s events happening at the same time and venue as the senior’s teams, find time to cheer on and watch the junior’s games. In recent bonfire celebrations for the kickoff of Season 101, San Beda has amped up efforts in showing support to all sports programs of the university. Selected teams from the junior’s programs attended the bonfire send off in the Manila campus.
For the junior’s program, senior’s athletes from the Manila campus showed support through attending the kickoff celebrations in Rizal. As both programs show camaraderie and mutual respect, it is time we do our part as a community and showcase what it means to be one San Beda.
The case is the same for events where both programs overlap. The juniors and senior’s programs cheer each other on and provide equal attention to the performances and wellbeing of their fellow Bedan athletes.
Despite this junior’s program being different from the juniors program our elder alumni are used, this is still the same San Beda that is known for housing legends and future mainstays, not just in San Beda, but in Philippine sports.
In their quest to repeat last seasons’ championships, we must live up to the support we give to the senior’s teams. As the current crop of cubs grow and learn, we must do our part in preparing the future leaders of the pride.
Email me at thebedan_sportseditor@sanbeda.edu.ph