College Ball & Pride
Bleacher Talk
July 15, 2007
College Ball & Pride
Have you surfed channels and observed the ongoing PBA Finals and basketball games of the UAAP? Did you notice which games had more “K”? Which games had more fans or spectators? From this lot of fans, which fans were wilder, rowdier, or were simply having more fun? Which games had louder cheering support for teams? Which TV production/coverage had more TV sponsors?
If you answered the PBA, guess again. The period between July and September is actually the time the PBA takes a back seat to the real stars of local basketball. It’s time for college ball once again as the UAAP leads the pack of the country’s collegiate leagues in “taking over’ local basketball. Incidentally, it is of no coincidence that the PBA and PBL are taking their respective off-season breaks.
I’ve always admired the way the UAAP and NCAA games are being conducted, from the actual games, to the fans and their TV coverage/productions. All these are at par or are even better than the PBA, and they’ve managed to really establish a name for themselves. If this were a Marketing 101 class, these leagues already have a strong brand equity.
And as I admire both leagues, I can’t help but also take a look at our very own CESAFI, Cebu’s collegiate league that could boast to be the best outside Metro Manila. And yes, I’ll have to ask the same questions as those raised earlier in this column. Do we have the same wild fans, full-house venues and high-tech TV coverages for our very own CESAFI? Or better yet, does the CESAFI have any significant impact or influence on local basketball fans? I guess the bottom line question that we should be asking ourselves is how close (or far) are we from being a UAAP or NCAA?
At this point, it will be tough to make a sweeping generalization of CESAFI’s status, but I’d like to cite one single factor that makes the UAAP the premier collegiate league in the land today. And I invite you to see if we also have the same things in the CESAFI. This isn’t the most important part of a basketball league per se, but is an excellent gauge of the league’s status.
The Fans. The UAAP’s fans are mad about their teams. They scream their heads off at the bleachers and support their teams like crazy. The irony of it all is that we’re seeing only elimination round games so far. The mother showcase of fan support would have to be at all La Salle-Ateneo games. The Araneta Coliseum is a must as a venue where tickets are sold out way before the gates open on game day. Scalpers love it when La Salle and Ateneo meet since they hardly have to do any “selling.” Their jacked-up tickets are sold at four to five times their face value and they still run out of tickets to sell. July 28 will mark their first official UAAP game in two years after La Salle’s suspension last year, and this early, fans of both sides are already looking forward to the battle.
Can we say the same thing about the CESAFI?
A consequence of a big fan base are the full-house venues at almost all (if not all) UAAP games, regardless of whether or not these are elimination round or playoff games. Fan loyalty is so strong that you have students and alumni so proud of their teams. Some will say that many of these fans come from “hakot” crowds, but if you’ll take a closer look, you’ll notice that many of them go to the games on their own and without any hakot “pressure” from their schools. You’ll even notice a spill-over effect even among our midst where you see Cebuanos cheering for UAAP or NCAA teams. I don’t think this is a result of hakot, do you?
But the question is “why?” Why are these students and alumni so gung-ho in defending their teams? Do we see this same loyalty among CESAFI fans? Do we see diehard USC students cheering for USC in the same way that Ateneans or La Sallians cheer for their teams?
It’s all about pride. The one thing missing in our local setting is one’s love for his/her school (for students), or his/her alma mater (for alumni). Rarely will we see local basketball fans madly loyal to their school teams. The only exception here would those diehard fans of UV and UC. But you can count them with your fingers. How about you? Are you proud of your school? When your school plays in a CESAFI game, does this have any impact on your being a student or alumnus of your school?
If you talk to a grade school student of La Salle or Ateneo, chances are high that you’ll see someone who’s madly proud of his school. And it’s not about basketball. It’s all about loving one’s school, nothing more. When this love and pride is nurtured through the years all the way to college, it’s virtually impossible to erase it. And so I ask again. Do we have the same thing in Cebu?
I’d like to believe that the CESAFI can and will become an institution in the long run. But it won’t happen overnight. And we all know where it all starts. Thump your chest with your fist. Now that’s a start.
***
Time-out: Happy Fiesta to the people of Lutopan (Brgy. DAS). May Our Lady of Mt. Carmel bring back the glory days of old. >>> You can reach me at bleachertalk@yahoo.com
July 15, 2007
College Ball & Pride
Have you surfed channels and observed the ongoing PBA Finals and basketball games of the UAAP? Did you notice which games had more “K”? Which games had more fans or spectators? From this lot of fans, which fans were wilder, rowdier, or were simply having more fun? Which games had louder cheering support for teams? Which TV production/coverage had more TV sponsors?
If you answered the PBA, guess again. The period between July and September is actually the time the PBA takes a back seat to the real stars of local basketball. It’s time for college ball once again as the UAAP leads the pack of the country’s collegiate leagues in “taking over’ local basketball. Incidentally, it is of no coincidence that the PBA and PBL are taking their respective off-season breaks.
I’ve always admired the way the UAAP and NCAA games are being conducted, from the actual games, to the fans and their TV coverage/productions. All these are at par or are even better than the PBA, and they’ve managed to really establish a name for themselves. If this were a Marketing 101 class, these leagues already have a strong brand equity.
And as I admire both leagues, I can’t help but also take a look at our very own CESAFI, Cebu’s collegiate league that could boast to be the best outside Metro Manila. And yes, I’ll have to ask the same questions as those raised earlier in this column. Do we have the same wild fans, full-house venues and high-tech TV coverages for our very own CESAFI? Or better yet, does the CESAFI have any significant impact or influence on local basketball fans? I guess the bottom line question that we should be asking ourselves is how close (or far) are we from being a UAAP or NCAA?
At this point, it will be tough to make a sweeping generalization of CESAFI’s status, but I’d like to cite one single factor that makes the UAAP the premier collegiate league in the land today. And I invite you to see if we also have the same things in the CESAFI. This isn’t the most important part of a basketball league per se, but is an excellent gauge of the league’s status.
The Fans. The UAAP’s fans are mad about their teams. They scream their heads off at the bleachers and support their teams like crazy. The irony of it all is that we’re seeing only elimination round games so far. The mother showcase of fan support would have to be at all La Salle-Ateneo games. The Araneta Coliseum is a must as a venue where tickets are sold out way before the gates open on game day. Scalpers love it when La Salle and Ateneo meet since they hardly have to do any “selling.” Their jacked-up tickets are sold at four to five times their face value and they still run out of tickets to sell. July 28 will mark their first official UAAP game in two years after La Salle’s suspension last year, and this early, fans of both sides are already looking forward to the battle.
Can we say the same thing about the CESAFI?
A consequence of a big fan base are the full-house venues at almost all (if not all) UAAP games, regardless of whether or not these are elimination round or playoff games. Fan loyalty is so strong that you have students and alumni so proud of their teams. Some will say that many of these fans come from “hakot” crowds, but if you’ll take a closer look, you’ll notice that many of them go to the games on their own and without any hakot “pressure” from their schools. You’ll even notice a spill-over effect even among our midst where you see Cebuanos cheering for UAAP or NCAA teams. I don’t think this is a result of hakot, do you?
But the question is “why?” Why are these students and alumni so gung-ho in defending their teams? Do we see this same loyalty among CESAFI fans? Do we see diehard USC students cheering for USC in the same way that Ateneans or La Sallians cheer for their teams?
It’s all about pride. The one thing missing in our local setting is one’s love for his/her school (for students), or his/her alma mater (for alumni). Rarely will we see local basketball fans madly loyal to their school teams. The only exception here would those diehard fans of UV and UC. But you can count them with your fingers. How about you? Are you proud of your school? When your school plays in a CESAFI game, does this have any impact on your being a student or alumnus of your school?
If you talk to a grade school student of La Salle or Ateneo, chances are high that you’ll see someone who’s madly proud of his school. And it’s not about basketball. It’s all about loving one’s school, nothing more. When this love and pride is nurtured through the years all the way to college, it’s virtually impossible to erase it. And so I ask again. Do we have the same thing in Cebu?
I’d like to believe that the CESAFI can and will become an institution in the long run. But it won’t happen overnight. And we all know where it all starts. Thump your chest with your fist. Now that’s a start.
***
Time-out: Happy Fiesta to the people of Lutopan (Brgy. DAS). May Our Lady of Mt. Carmel bring back the glory days of old. >>> You can reach me at bleachertalk@yahoo.com
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