CESAFI Earning Respect
Bleacher Talk
August 5, 2007
CESAFI Earning Respect
The local basketball scene couldn’t have picked a better time to wake up from a long nap with the opening of the seventh season of the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation (CESAFI) yesterday.
When one talks about Cebu Basketball and its impact or contribution to the bigger picture, the CESAFI and/or the local collegiate scene will always be tops in terms of heritage, history and prominence. And no other local league, personality or establishment can claim to be bigger or richer in history.
Although the CESAFI is only seven years old, it traces its roots to the long history of the Cebu Amateur Athletic Association (CAAA) and all the collegiate leagues of the past. Through the years, many leagues have come and gone, but none has lasted as long as the local collegiate family. This link to the past makes it the longest running local league in the land today. The CESAFI and all its predecessor-leagues in the past have thus made local collegiate basketball an institution in Cebu hoops history.
As I salute the CESAFI and its member-schools for being what it is today, I would also like to throw a challenge to the league and ask it what exactly it wants to become in the future. What is the CESAFI today, and what is its vision for the future? And what is the league doing to get there?
True, the CESAFI is a pillar of local basketball, but neither can we help but also ask how it is compared to the “other” bigger collegiate leagues in Manila. Let’s face it, the UAAP and NCAA have grown by leaps and bounds through time, and we must admit that it looks like they’re leaving us behind. When you talk about college ball, the UAAP and NCAA are easily the top-of-mind answers as the most prestigious and most respected leagues in the land today.
Respect. May be we should start with that. Is the CESAFI now gaining the respect from basketball fans nationwide? Who or what is the CESAFI to a basketball fan in Manila or Davao? Let’s not even talk about Cebu basketball fans. I’m pretty sure they’re very much aware of the CESAFI as the only big Cebu-based league today. For the record, gone are the commercial leagues of the past as the “in” thing today for them is the regional league set-up.
What kind of respect would the CESAFI like to earn from the basketball family nationwide? What is the league’s score in terms of “respect”? Is the CESAFI happy with this or should it always be on a drive to become better or more respected every year? Can it match the respect that the UAAP has earned through these years? I ask these questions with the goal of having the league take a close look at the mirror and assess how far it has gone ever since its birth in 2000. And where does it want to be as it approaches its first decade and beyond?
My personal dream is that the CESAFI become the UAAP of the South with the whole of Vismin looking up to us as THE place for college ball. I’d like to see national TV coverage, tons of sponsors, wild fans, excellent PBA-potential talents and full-house crowds. But can we get there? Or maybe the question should be: Do we want to get there?
On the side, as we dwell on the topic of “respect,” I couldn’t ignore the fact that the Cebu Basketball scene has just been souped up with the appointments of four local sportsmen to various positions. BAP-SBP Executive Director Pato Gregorio has appointed Michel Lhuillier as the BAP-SBP’s Head for Visayas. Councilor (and Coach) Yayoy Alcoseba is the Head for Region 7, while sportsman Lorenzo “Chao” Sy is in charge of the Cebu province. Ramon Fernandez is in charge of the BAP-SBP National Training Center for the Visayas. While I feel there are already too many sports leaders for our small basketball family, let’s give them the benefit of the doubt with regard to their plans in developing the sport in Cebu.
And as they go on with their projects, what will the CESAFI’s role be in this crowded lot? I’d like to believe that Yayoy, Chao and El Presidente will be able to work on each his own specific programs that won’t conflict with each other. And I’m sure they’ll respect the CESAFI as the collegiate league of Cebu.
So let the games begin! May the CESAFI 2007 season make the league better than before and may it be on the way to reaching its dreams……and respect.
***
Time-out: Happy birthday to our hard-working sports editor Manny Villaruel, Allan Roy Rodriguez and Ricky Poca. >>> You can reach me at bleachertalk@yahoo.com
August 5, 2007
CESAFI Earning Respect
The local basketball scene couldn’t have picked a better time to wake up from a long nap with the opening of the seventh season of the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation (CESAFI) yesterday.
When one talks about Cebu Basketball and its impact or contribution to the bigger picture, the CESAFI and/or the local collegiate scene will always be tops in terms of heritage, history and prominence. And no other local league, personality or establishment can claim to be bigger or richer in history.
Although the CESAFI is only seven years old, it traces its roots to the long history of the Cebu Amateur Athletic Association (CAAA) and all the collegiate leagues of the past. Through the years, many leagues have come and gone, but none has lasted as long as the local collegiate family. This link to the past makes it the longest running local league in the land today. The CESAFI and all its predecessor-leagues in the past have thus made local collegiate basketball an institution in Cebu hoops history.
As I salute the CESAFI and its member-schools for being what it is today, I would also like to throw a challenge to the league and ask it what exactly it wants to become in the future. What is the CESAFI today, and what is its vision for the future? And what is the league doing to get there?
True, the CESAFI is a pillar of local basketball, but neither can we help but also ask how it is compared to the “other” bigger collegiate leagues in Manila. Let’s face it, the UAAP and NCAA have grown by leaps and bounds through time, and we must admit that it looks like they’re leaving us behind. When you talk about college ball, the UAAP and NCAA are easily the top-of-mind answers as the most prestigious and most respected leagues in the land today.
Respect. May be we should start with that. Is the CESAFI now gaining the respect from basketball fans nationwide? Who or what is the CESAFI to a basketball fan in Manila or Davao? Let’s not even talk about Cebu basketball fans. I’m pretty sure they’re very much aware of the CESAFI as the only big Cebu-based league today. For the record, gone are the commercial leagues of the past as the “in” thing today for them is the regional league set-up.
What kind of respect would the CESAFI like to earn from the basketball family nationwide? What is the league’s score in terms of “respect”? Is the CESAFI happy with this or should it always be on a drive to become better or more respected every year? Can it match the respect that the UAAP has earned through these years? I ask these questions with the goal of having the league take a close look at the mirror and assess how far it has gone ever since its birth in 2000. And where does it want to be as it approaches its first decade and beyond?
My personal dream is that the CESAFI become the UAAP of the South with the whole of Vismin looking up to us as THE place for college ball. I’d like to see national TV coverage, tons of sponsors, wild fans, excellent PBA-potential talents and full-house crowds. But can we get there? Or maybe the question should be: Do we want to get there?
On the side, as we dwell on the topic of “respect,” I couldn’t ignore the fact that the Cebu Basketball scene has just been souped up with the appointments of four local sportsmen to various positions. BAP-SBP Executive Director Pato Gregorio has appointed Michel Lhuillier as the BAP-SBP’s Head for Visayas. Councilor (and Coach) Yayoy Alcoseba is the Head for Region 7, while sportsman Lorenzo “Chao” Sy is in charge of the Cebu province. Ramon Fernandez is in charge of the BAP-SBP National Training Center for the Visayas. While I feel there are already too many sports leaders for our small basketball family, let’s give them the benefit of the doubt with regard to their plans in developing the sport in Cebu.
And as they go on with their projects, what will the CESAFI’s role be in this crowded lot? I’d like to believe that Yayoy, Chao and El Presidente will be able to work on each his own specific programs that won’t conflict with each other. And I’m sure they’ll respect the CESAFI as the collegiate league of Cebu.
So let the games begin! May the CESAFI 2007 season make the league better than before and may it be on the way to reaching its dreams……and respect.
***
Time-out: Happy birthday to our hard-working sports editor Manny Villaruel, Allan Roy Rodriguez and Ricky Poca. >>> You can reach me at bleachertalk@yahoo.com
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