Just asking.

With the likes of Almeda, Membrere, Tenorio, Casio, Arao, Escueta, Tabique etc. already in the UAAP, they no longer need to.

If they do they'll surely rule UAAP basketball within three years of transferring. Ato Badolato has consistently produced top-calibre UAAP talent from his Red Cubs program. If they ever go UAAP he will surely command the absolute loyalty of some of the best juniors players in the land. If for instance they were to offically complete their transfer for Season 68, they would have a team with Menor, Taganas, Martinez and Hermida from their present juniors, and may even have other blue chip recruits such as PCU's Al Hussaini, UP's Villanueva, Libunao of LSGH beating a path to their door just to be coached by the legendary El Senor Badolato. Heck I wouldn't be surprised if Mike Baldos has a homecoming in such circumstances, and I certainly would not begrudge him because of Coach Ato.

however, why do the san beda cubs still move out when they're part of the ncaa (san beda lions) which also graduates players to the pba?

i think the cubs believe that they've already proven their worth in the ncaa, lording it over for the past how many years. They've also won a lot of other competitions and that's why they want to transfer to the uaap because it provides stiffer competion and it seems to challenge them as players. The uaap is also more popular and is a bigger stepping stone to those who dream of making it to the pros

Just to add, I talked with El Senor during the Fr Martin over the summer whenever the games were held at Beda. Apparently he doesn't think much of the highly politicized Seniors program of Beda. But instead of having his boys go to rival NCAA schools (he still loves Beda that much in spite of the politicking) he refers them to UAAP schools. Hindi pa naman siya napahiya: LA, Magnum, Toti Almeda, Renren Ritualo, Tyrone Bautista, Benjie Paras, Eric Altamirano have all done him proud in the UAAP.

I've always had a soft spot for San Beda and would love to see them in the UAAP. Heck, I'd trade away NU and Adamson just to have SBC in the UAAP! They've been wanting to get into the UAAP ever since Ateneo and La Salle left the NCAA. In the present NCAA, they're really just wasting away. The last championship they had was when they defeated us in 1977. They must have made with the devil to win then.

Plus they have equally interesting cheers like the Indian Yell that go way back.

There was a time in 1977 when their Indian type of cheering was so solid and forceful that Ateneo had to hold an emergency meeting before Game 2 of the championships to muster an equal cheering force. There was then the complaint that the entry of a lot of female students plus a good number of non-Ateneo High Schoolers into college was diluting the crowd with people who were either passive or didn't know the cheers. So in the next game, all the rabid high school students were asked to sit together at the center of the bleacher section of Araneta. (At that time the Araneta bleachers consisted of what we now know as Upper B plus Admission.) It worked!

true blue,

I have heard so much about the cheering meeting before Game 2 of the 1977 Final. What I remember most is watching Game 3, the closed-door game. Before the game, Fr. Cruz announced on the air that win or lose, Ateneo would be leaving the NCAA. Right at that moment, I had a feeling that Ateneo would lose. Then, when they played the game, it was so silent, you could actually hear the ball bouncing on the court and the players shoes squeak on the floor. That was a weird game.

Indian Yell -- For me, done well, this is still the best Philippine college cheer -- incredibly long and complicated, horns galore, full of bassy-male voices. It really sounds like a warpath. Actually, part of the reason I want SBC back against us is to hear their Indian Yell again. Unfortunately, they don't do it as well as they used to.

I have lots of bedan ofc mates and when I do invite them to watch ateneo games they would cheer for us and vice versa. That indian yell is really cool with those big "healthy" kids out on the floor. I think the people who runs san beda (brothers?) are sooo traditional that they resisted the idea of enlarging and diversifying their school. I think San beda, dlsu, ateneo and letran were all the same at some point in the 60's and 70's, but dlsu and ateneo had the long term thinking that they needed to make it in to a university. My bedan friend said that they are now in the process of enlarging their school, by introducing women to college and moving the gradeschool and highschool to rizal province. the bedan campus in mendiola he says, would be a college campus. (they only have 1000 college students as of now) Sad part is, the gradeschool kids that dance the indian yell during their games will not be seen anymore especially on weekday games because their campus is too far now.

Joe,

Think back when Ato Badolato was the coach of both the jrs. and seniors of SBC. He did not hold back his high school players if the said players were offered better opportunities by UAAP school. Back then, only UP and LaSalle succeeded to recruit SBC players. The politics in SBC and his personal loyalty to his high school players made his stay as senior coach untenable. SBC did not keep their blue chip high school players. The alumni have been clamoring for a change but none have stepped up to the plate to support the college team financially.

Is it true that the new SBC gym was the payoff from MVP for Badolato steering his blue chippers to Katipunan?

Maybe not. From what i heard, the new SBC Gym/s were built with the money they got from the government (for the LRT2 Mendiola station).

LRTA-Megatren proceeds din ang alam ko, at least that's what one of the Doms there told me. Pero sincerely maganda at modern ang St Placid gym ng Beda, DALAWA PA! One for games and one for practice exclusively ng Beda players.

meron pang trophy room ng juniors! ang daming trophies! nakakalula.

Is this the court where the rings are designed intentionally to be smaller than standard?

To all those in authority (please note that I did not mention oldtimers),

Considering that Ateneo locked horns with both San Beda College and La Salle in the NCAA, why is it that present Ateneans seem to display warm affinity with Bedans while showing cold enmity towards La Sallians?

Enlighten us, please.

Thanks.

Bedans, to quote Lord Maverick, have always been worthy opponents even during the rumble days of the 1970's. Unlike "they who want to be Atenistas but cannot pass the entrance exam." I do not even know exactly how an Ateneo-Lasalle rivalry ever came about lalo sa basketball, especially since the real hot rivalry in the NCAA was Ateneo-San Beda. Mav is the one who should really be explaining this.

As for the practice court, yes, that would be the one with the smaller rings, although said rings are of course removable in case they need to scrimmage with the regulation diameter. And yes again, those NCAA Juniors trophies could fill a cathedral.

As far as I remember, we never competed head on with San Beda in other things other than sports, particularly basketball. Whereas, I don't know about you guys, but as early as primary grades, teachers would tell us to prepare for this and this competition against La Salle etc., ranging from Math contests, debate, elocution, spelling... La Salle was always the arch rival in everything.

Joe,

My take on the situation is this, if you go back to the old records of Ateneo athletic competitions, you will see that the Red Lions were our original and true rivals. In the early years of the NCAA, Ateneo won three straight basketball crowns. This was followed by San Beda's three basketball crowns. In the years that followed, San Beda would spoil Ateneo's bid in basketball and vice versa. At this time, both schools developed their cheering and singing traditions. Both schools were also all-male and quite small (In the fifties, the college population was less than a hundred). I guess it was at about this time that both schools developed the fierce loyalty of their students. Ateneo alumni are a tightly-knit bunch. The same can be said about Bedan alumni. When Roco ran for President, the only reply I got from my father was that he had to help Roco since he was a fellow Bedan.

La Salle in those early years was not even in the basketball picture. Their sport was football and their basketball team was one of those also-rans. Things changed in 1939 when they stole a phenomenal upset against Ateneo in the NCAA basketball final. But, even then, they were a weak team in the NCAA basketball scene though capable of occasional flashes of brilliance behind Bachman and Lim Eng Beng. As it is now, their cheering was considered weak. Ateneo, San Beda and Letran would constantly taunt the La Sallites with "cheer La Salle cheer" since they had a habit of just sitting on their hands during games. When I hear of La Salle alumni being quiet at games, I can't blame them for acting this way. That's probably the way they were growing up.

The Ateneo-La Salle rivalry got off in earnest in the late thirties, no doubt spurred by the 1939 La Salle championship (where La Sallites displayed their great class by holding one of their infamous victory parades in front of the Faura campus and tossing fried chickens on the Ateneo lawn). Also, at this time, Ateneans and La Sallites started competing head to head not just in sports but academically (and for girls). The fact that the country's elite families routinely chose between Ateneo and La Salle fueled it even further. I think that this may have to do with the fact that both schools were considered English-speaking schools, being run by English speaking priests (Ateneo - American; La Salle - Irish with French and Belgians). English was considered the language of advancement in the Commonwealth Era whereas Spanish was not. The Bedans sort of had a handicap in this since the monks running the school still came from Spanish persuasion being mostly from the old monastery of Montserrat in Barcelona. This could explain why, as observed by true.blue, we usually go head to head with La Salle in academics and perhaps against San Beda in sports -- the roots of the rivalry took different forms.

But for my money, I still prefer the spirit of the Beda boys anytime over the La Sallites. Their brand of school spirit was the kind they wore on their chests and flaunted and shouted to the world -- which is exactly the kind of fierce loyalty we have in this blue corner of the universe. This is why I say that in spirit, they are our worthier rivals. Perhaps that's why we had to call emergency meetings to correct our cheering and rumbled with the red boys outside the Coliseum after games -- and not after parties or soirees.

Cheers!

This article was taken from the Manila Bulletin around last year, just thought to share this with you. As a Bedan I was caught by surprised with the things you have said here and we are just lost for words. Some of your comments were posted in our bedista.com and we checked this out. Thank you once again

Class act
Tito S. Talao


RICHIE ALVAREZ and Wesley Gonzales should have been there.




It was an experience the two Ateneo stars would have treasured.


The roar of the crowd if the Blue Eagles were to successfully defend the UAAP basketball title this year would be incomparable.


But that would be a pro-Ateneo crowd led by its No. 1 patron Manny V. Pangilinan, owner of the Talk ‘N Text Phone Pals.


Thursday night at the Makati Coliseum was different.


Not only were the Blue Eagles outnumbered and outgunned by the San Beda Red Lions on the playing court, they were also decisively trampled in other parts of the Makati Coliseum.


At ringside, lower box and the general admission section, to be precise.


With the Red Lions arriving with a full complement for the Grudge Games of Champions League 2003 - from their coaching staff and players to their crowd and drum-and-bugle band, one was transported back to the glory days of the NCAA in the seventies and eighties when De La Salle, Letran, Ateneo and San Beda went at each other’s throats and battle lines were drawn right down the middle.


Undermanned as they were, the Blue Eagles fought valiantly behind L.A. Tenorio, Magnum Membrere, Alex Fonacier and Paolo Bugia.


But the Red Lions were in devouring mode, swiping at their ancient rivals with one giant paw after another until the Blue Eagles were reduced to being Tweety against Sylvester.


Then came the defining moment that made every NCAA game back then an event to remember.


As customary, the winners were allowed to play and sing their school anthem first and the huge San Beda crowd, overwhelming their counterparts maybe ten to one, delivered a rousing tribute to their team.


When the rendition was over, the drums and bugles took over, delivering deafening beats and ear-splitting blasts that got stronger and louder as the hushed Ateneo supporters waited for the storm to pass.


Finally the thunderous roar of the victorious San Beda crowd subsided and the Ateneo followers, raising their fists with steadfast defiance, began their own hymn.


Nothing much to it really. Until a pair of hands — San Beda hands — then two, three, four...ten...fifty...a hundred...two hundred...three hundred pairs of hands started clapping in rhythm to the Ateneo anthem.


It was a stirring experience filled with symbolism and historical significance; the past reaching out and connecting with the present.


Up at the bleacher section, commissioner Ramon Fernandez and league chairman Joe Lipa watched transfixed as the Ateneo hymn hit fever pitch and the San Beda applause rose and reverberated with measured cadence.


In a corner at the uppermost row at ringside, Ateneo team official Junjun Capistrano, in a blue collared shirt, appeared to be holding something back while on the playing court, the Blue Eagles wrapped arms around each other as the last notes faded.


The San Beda ovation continued as the Blue Eagles made their way to the locker room, eliciting grateful smiles and nods from Ateneo supporters and team members.


I’ve covered the UAAP wars for the past 20 years and rare during my watch had I been so touched and moved by a crowd’s reaction to an opposing team.


A class act, the San Beda fans were that evening.


One felt so privileged to have been there that it almost seemed unfair to both Richie Alvarez and Wesley Gonzales that they weren’t.

Animo Red,

Thanks for sharing the article. We look forward to your posts in this forum. We hope someday that we can both cheer for our respective schools and rekindle this rivalry. All the best.

ONE BIG FIGHT!

Aside from the new campus in Rizal, the sister school in Alabang, will now be known as San Beda Alabang so it will be incorporated with the main campus in Mendiola. The only problem now is that the Mendiola Bedans have this mixed feelings with all of this, it has become like a "DLSU vs. CSB" identity brouhaha.

thank you again, your support is really highly appreciated

animo red,

San Beda Alabang has been around since the 70's -- first as Benedictine Abbey School then as St. Benedict College. At that time, I think the monks were thinking of transferring the entire San Beda to Alabang (like what Ateneo did when transferring from Padre Faura to Loyola). The student riots and demonstrations in front of Malacanang did not make Mendiola the ideal place to study. The plan never materialized and a separate school grew up in Alabang. This was fortunate for the monks since the south of Manila started expanding rapidly as new families moved into the Alabang-Muntinlupa area to ensure the viability of the school.

The comparison between CSB and SBC are misplaced. SBC-Alabang serves an entirely different geographical constituency of persons who wish to have a Benedictine education but can't travel all the way to Mendiola for classes. In the case of CSB, it sits right in front of the main La Salle campus so the argument of geographical diversity is lost. The argument that CSB offers different programs from DLSU-Manila is lost by the fact that CSB actually offers some management/commerce classes like DLSU-Manila. Granted that CSB offers non-traditional courses, it begs the question: Can't these same non-traditional courses be offered by DLSU-Manila itself?

This has been a subject of long debate but my hunch is, the answer is "no". One reason would be La Salle's traditional university organizational structure. Where in DLSU would you put a course like multimedia arts or music production? Even if you could squeeze it under their equivalent of "college of arts and sciences", these programs would not be able to avail of the same kind of attention they would have gotten under CSB.

Another reason would be that radical changes and innovation is usually anathema in traditional universities. Conservatism is the pervasive culture in their respective colleges. Yet CSB needs the flexibility to meet rapidly changing market needs (i.e., drop programs and add others).

Rabbaddal,

Granted, but, my quick and dirty answer is still "yes." The fact that you have a traditional university set-up does not preclude you from organizing new colleges or institutes to accomodate new technologies, disciplines or media. For example, multimedia studies can be handled by your communications department, hotel and restaurant administration can be handled by a separate HRM college within the university. In the local scene, one only has to look at the example of UP. It has the AIT for Tourism (which was a non-traditional course in its time) and the College of Home Economics (for HRA and Home Ec, among others). Abroad, Harvard has its Extension School which caters to working adults much like the night schools in the Philippines. The point here is, a university can tailor its organization to fold-in non-traditional or new disciplines if it chooses to. I don't see why the same could have been worked out on Taft.

I was also a product of San Beda Alabang, though I spent my gradeschool and highschool years in the Alabang campus than in Mendiola but it was only in Mendiola did we feel the truest sense of being a Bedan is- and that is where my loyalty stays. Unfortunately i cannot say the same in Alabang for they are only Bedans by name, (actually when I was there we never used the word) there's not much identity there. That's one of the reasons why the Mendiola Bedans are a bit displeased because over a hundred years of tradition will be handed to Alabang overnight. And the reason why Benedictine Abbey has chosen to use San Beda as their official name? It's because of marketing strategy alone, for their reason is that St. Benedict College isn't really well known.

That's the advantage of La Salle Zobel over Benedictine Abbey, they teach their students from early on who they are, and they are backed by years of culture and tradition.

From the looks of it, it seems that CSB is just DLSU's own way of tailoring its organizational structure (in the same way that Columbia kept a separate but affiliate system college in Barnard). I speculate that DLSU chose to do it its own way for the following reasons:

1. Fitting non-traditional courses into existing departments (i.e. multimedia studies into comm dept) - For the reasons that I mentioned. Could be anathema for departments with a conservative culture. Even if it looks doable on paper, the people involved might not be of the kind of mindset to assimilate "innovative" programs under their wings. I cannot speak for the culture in La Salle's colleges but in Ateneo, it takes years for changes in programs to be implemented (for good reason).

2. UP system of setting up separate colleges - There could be other reasons why UP sets up their own colleges besides for the sake of granting degrees. They could also be doing cutting edge research and consulting services, grad studies and the likes. But if CSB's objective is simply to get undergrads trained on new skills, then a full-blown standalone college may not be necessary. We also have to figure out whether UP is a good model when it comes to organizational structure among universities.

3. Extension school - Could've been CSB except that it doesn't have a separate administration.

Having a separately administered college (own president, chancellor, etc.) within the same "system" is not unique to DLSU / CSB. Aside from Columbia / Barnard, other schools that use similar approaches are Pomona / Claremont McKenna / Harvey Mudd / Scripps / CGU / etc., U Regina / Campion (a Jesuit affiliate of a secular university) and U Western Ontario / Huron College.

I know, CSB is no Campion College and I will not risk the ire of the Jesuit school aficionados here by insinuating that they are similar, but both are administered separately from the "mother university".

Animo Red,

I was close enough to the action down south to see the beginnings of DLSZ and BAS/Bene. In the beginning, DLSZ wasn't even called that but La Salle South or La Salle Alabang. At that time, the traditional juniors component of DLSU was considered to be LSGH. You couldn't even detect a DLSU-Manila connection to Zobel then and that school even tried to create a separate identity for itself by having its own monicker (Bengals). It was only when DLSZ officially became the juniors component of DLSU that there was a conscious effort to fold-in Zobel into the DLSU fold.

As for Bene, for the longest time, it had its own identity separate from SBC. I couldn't even detect the SBC presence in that place. Administratively though, it's really a wing of SBC -- the monks from Mendiola even sent up a priory in Alabang just to accommodate the eventual transfer of SBC to Bene. The thing about traditions is that it's not really transferrable. Each campus will evolve its own traditions, rites and secret handshakes. Even with the change of name, Bene will always have a distinct feel to it which will not be the same as SBC in Mendiola. In the event that Ateneo de Manila puts up a campus in, say, Canlubang, it will probably have a different feel to it from Loyola.

rabbaddal,

Your points, as usual, are well thought of and well-taken. Just want to point out that the comparison of CSB/La Salle to Barnard/Columbia could be misplaced since, in the case of the latter, Barnard really started out as an independent all-women's institution that was absorbed by its bigger and more illustrious neighbor.

Anyway, we will always have our pet theories as to the provenance of CSB and this discussion can perhaps be done over a few cold ones with your resident blue booster, BK. Perhaps, when I visit your cosmopolitan city?

Cheers, men!

And in the case of Barnard and Columbia, Barnard makes Columbia's reputation better. I don't know if we can say the same for CSB and La Salle.

Yes, let's all have a cold one when you get here.

yup! nakita ko nga ung mga trophies nila at nakakalula nga!

All this talk about Benedictine schools is making me feel bad kasi hindi napagtutuunan ng pansin ang St. Scholastica's College. Pero OK lang, alam na namin na Benedictine kami at alam na rin namin na special kami compared to other Benedictine schools like Beda and The School Formerly Known as Bene

*walks off singing "I am a Benedictine child and love my college dear..."*

I asked our former rector before regarding the relationship of St. Scho and San Beda. Though they are sister schools technically but they are both seperate identities, the San Beda monks hailed from Spain while the sisters of St. Scho came from Germany, so two different mother houses.

Unlike the Jesuits and the La Sallian brothers, their communities all over are connected, they have one grand system, while the Benedictines, each community is independent, there's no real whole structure. Sad... but they say San Beda here in the Philippines is the biggest Benedictine school in the world.

off topic:
My Alma Mater lost again today after having an 18 pt league against... no need to mention the school's name...lowly school if you ask me. Though we deserve to lose since our players don't really have the fighting spirit we see with the players from Ateneo. But it's ok, it's part of transition I guess, many things that needs improvement. We are wasting away in this league.

OT:
actually i was able to catch that game.....yup they blew up an 18pt lead in the 4th...sayang they bacame complacent eh....pero they did show teamwork during the 1st 3 qtrs..dishing out those extra passes...syang lang talaga they were not able to maintain the lead...

^Just noticed your signature, I think that's the thing our players must learn first.

watched the game at rizal a while ago. was cheering my heart out for the red lions.

actually, the red guys fought hard. andaya was just too big of a monster to overcome. paterno did his best to guard frankenstein but the refs weren't in the mood to call offensive fouls on him. add that to the fact that enrile was his usual cold-blooded self.

what saddens me more is that the red cubs (who have not lost a game for two years!) bowed to the feisty squires also.

(martinez is one heck of a player, though i heard that he really is planning to go to la salle. can anyone confirm?)

^ Wow I'm touched hehehe. I didn't even had the guts to watch the game live. Let's say the opposing crowd scared me more than the rain. hehehe

Regarding the loss of the cubs, it's a wake up call for them I guess.

I think my friend saw you kanina, were you wearing an Ateneo jacket?

LaSalle is indeed lusting for a number of red cub players and I expect them to land at least 2 blue chippers. I also heard about them salivating over the shooting prowess of Martinez. Menor is a possibility but he will have to play 3 or even 2 because he will be a liability at 4. Their center, Taganas, has to play 4 or even 3 in college. The other names mentioned are the point guards Hermida and Mikey Victorino.

By the way, Victorino was all set to transfer and play for LSGH this year until the alumni recruiters faced a road block. Bro. Oca, a diehard basketball junkie, did not want to rescind the rule of LSGH preventing transfer students to LSGH for their senior year of high school. He would have given LSGH a deeper bench and hopefully compete with SBC. The move to transfer him from BIS to LSGH should speak volume of his college intentions.

Nash Racela has been working hard to secure the services of the red cub players for college. He supposedly extended an open invitation to any of the players to join the scrimmages of the Red Lions to foster camaraderie among the players. But it looks like nothing has changed. LaSalle, Ateneo and UP may be the final destination of most of the red cubs. It was noted in AP.com that the recruiters of LaSalle and Ateneo has been seen watching the games of the red cubs.

The loss of the red cubs gave everybody in the NCAA hope of unseating the red cubs. Instead of a step ladder, the will now have a final 4. I expect SBC to play LSGH while Letran plays PCU.

regarding taganas & menor:

i heard from an inside source that taganas & menor will stay with san beda.

although former red cubs have played significant roles in ateneo and in other uaap schools, it would be nice if a lot of the future collegiate players stick it out with san beda. i mean, by default, dapat yun ang first choice nila. i can just imagine how frustrated i would be if a lot of the AHS players migrate to other schools for their college basketball careers.

Making the Red Cubs stay in the Lion's Den after HS has been an issue for years and years now. The alumni is frustrated and all with the administration. They have been courting the REd Cubs to stay, but the monks just don't want them to intervene. Studies come first as they say, so some people would just bow down to the request of the monks. There's so much internal conflict lang talaga happening in school, you just can't imagine. Our senior's basketball team is just a reflection of it. But this is part of transition.

In my personal opinion, it's quite ok for me to see our Cubs transfer to the UAAP for now, since they would be able to shine and develop their full potential. Until my school get it's act together and the people in question wake up to their senses, we are still in this sorry state. We have so much to learn first, I know Ateneo was in this stage before, as Maverick has said. That's why I see this as something we will over come. San Beda does needs more room to grow and be more mature.

But I do feel proud when our former Red Cubs shine in the UAAP.

wonderboynastyman:

You are right, Martinez is one heck of a player. I once saw him shoot thirty points in the off season games. He is a deadshot with good fundamentals. Plus, he can create his own shots.

He is heftier and taller than Jai Reyes. It also seems that La Salle is hot on his heels because he fits their system perfectly. Don't worry though, if the grapevine is correct, we have a lock on a 6'2 1/2 point guard who would give Martinez and Jai Reyes a run for their money.

Let us just wait and see how this pans out. Whatever it is, that Martinez boy has a place in the UAAP.

i agree. if i were the school, i would put a premium on studies before anything else. this is the duty of any school to its students. i think this viewpoint is just being consistent with the ideals of a school to, among others, strive for academic excellence. i hate to see the day when marquee players of a school go impoverished in the end once they've gone past their prime just because they did not finish their studies. if you can recall, a few years back, the cases of two former basketball players of the other side, you'll know the lesson to be learned there, and what i mean.
one should be proud of their school's athletic accomplishments. a school should be even prouder of their academic achievements, especially if these were attained by their players, which is rare but exemplary.
in addition, i am proud of the fact that ADMU has produced more home grown players who stayed with the school since grade school or high school. one player, ken barracoso had at one point in his 4th year HS got an honorable mention award. Presently, i think i can count like 5 or 6 players who are home grown players. i wish ADMU has more of these players in all sporting disciplines of the UAAP. now compare this with the other side, and you will be surprised how many home grown players they have, and from there you'll have an inkling of their recruitment policy and process for their teams.
just my two cents.

I would just like to add that I like the fact that the team's manager check up on the Eagles by asking some of their teachers. Like, he will ask them, "O, pumapasok ba sya? How is he doing?" Yung ganun. Kasi di naman forever sila player, dapat talaga mag-aral din. I think they also have tutors e. So they have the help they need.

One of the players I admire most is Paul Tanchi --- who was BS Management, 2000 and cum laude. Now, there's Chris Tiu who, I believe, is the top graduate from his Xavier HS batch. Nakakabilib yung ganun.

Yeah, Mr. Mossesgeld, Coach Sandy, and the rest of the coaching staff do take pains to ensure that the guys (as well as the student managers, *LOL*) are able to balance their studies and their acads--as I know all too well.

I was supposed to be one of the student managers this year. I'd been working with them for about a week and a half when, two days before our first round game against La Salle, Mr. Mossesgeld called me into his office to tell me he had to let me go. It wasn't because I was doing a bad job or anything like that; he had to let me go because he was concerned I wouldn't be able to balance my acads and my duties as a manager, as I'm on academic probation right now. I need at least a 1.9 QPI to make it to the second semester--and beyond. So, in order to help me make it to my junior year, he had to let me go. Man, that was one of the worst days of my life. Mr. Mossesgeld did tell me I could return next year, once my probation's been lifted. But still--having to let go of that job made me feel so bad.

Anyway, the players are also under the same restrictions. As Mr. M. told me, even good old Claiford Arao had to sit out a few games in the off-season because his grades were circling the bowl. When he managed to pull them up again, he was allowed to return to the team.

During one practice, before the end-of-practice team prayer, Coach Sandy emphasized the importance of getting good grades. He stressed that they should find ways to balance their studies and basketball effectively. He even gave them tips. "O, yung mga graduate students, since you have a lot of time on your hands, you might be tempted to slack off. Try to avoid that. Yung mga undergraduates, stay focused. Yung mga seniors, good luck sa thesis..." and on and on.

The Eagles really focus on their studies. I bumped into Macky once at the lib, and the guy was hard at work studying for an exam. After a game (I can't remember which), I bumped into JC, who was busy typing up a paper.

In Ateneo, you're a student first--an athelete second. /wink

hey tall_tales, very nice and revealing stuff you shared back there one more reason why it's never hard to support ateneo athletes, and the basketball team as an example. when you know your guys are good athletes and, more importantly, good people who know their priorities, staying with them during both the good and bad times, and lifting them up whenever things go wrong becomes a very fulfilling experience but i guess some outsiders will never understand.

this is off-topic but i also want to commend you publicly for openly discussing what is normally considered private stuff - one's QPI. this is anyway an ateneo support site, and you are an atenean. therefore, i wish to extend my support to you too through prayers and wishes of good luck in school. KAYANG-KAYA MO YAN MY FRIEND! just like what we tell our athletes...BELIEVE

GO TALL_TALES

GO ATENEO!

ONE TEAM

ONE COMMUNITY

ONE BIG FIGHT!

I think this is the best explanation regarding why San Beda lets our Cubs go.



After reading this again, it shed some more light. At least I can say that despite of all the ruckus, even if we're on a losing streak, San Beda still prioritizes good quality education and not be blinded by the "short lived prestige" of winning ballgames.

good for san beda and their students (and the parents of the students) in the long term

^ Yeah, San Beda is wasting out in NCAA. I hope this would happen soon, para isang liga na lang papanuorin ko. haha!