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RSSNice to know that Kobe and I share one thing: we're both ultra-competitive in Cranium. ;)
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
Bleeding Blue
The truth of the matter is that I’ve forgotten a lot of them. I’ve been watching Ateneo-La Salle games since I was a college freshman in 1992, and for the life of me, I don’t remember more than half of them. Sure, I got immersed in the rivalry during “the Dark Ages of Ateneo basketball” in the 1990s, when the Blue Eagles would get beaten not just by powers like La Salle and UST, but also by also-rans like UP and NU. Back then, Ateneo-La Salle tickets were only difficult to come by because it seemed like all the green alumni were hoarding them. You can’t tell me otherwise because their crowd occupied 70-80% of the Araneta Coliseum while we had one solitary bass drum to lead our cheers. I know because I was there in Upper Box B.
In my sophomore year in 1993, the Blue Eagles went through another dismal season. Although the season started with promise as Richie Ticzon and Paolo Isidro were then joined by transferees Vince Hizon and Dodot Jaworski, it turned into another nightmare season for the team from Loyola Heights. Ticzon was on his fifth and final year with the Eagles, and he had never beaten the hated Archers. This was his last chance at tasting at least a bit of old school Ateneo-La Salle glory.
My cuts for the old Reserved Officer Training Corps (ROTC) had run out and back then, Ateneo-La Salle games were only broadcast on Saturdays, when there was ROTC class on the Ateneo campus. When the schedule revealed that on the final day of round 2 of the eliminations, Ateneo would face La Salle, my blockmates and I decided on the spot that we’d overcut for the sake of this game. The weird thing for us was the game wasn’t even the main game for the day. So low had the Blue Eagles fallen in the UAAP that their classic rivalry game could only serve as an appetizer for a game between then-powerhouses UST and Adamson.
I don’t recall much from that day except that a classmate and I rushed from Loyola Heights to the Araneta Coliseum while still in our ROTC fatigues. The Ateneo contingent was tiny, probably less than 50 people, and all we had was that single bass drum to lead the cheers of the Blue Babble Battalion. In those days, the Green Archers were just on their way to becoming UST’s main rival for championships. These were the years when they were powered by Jason Webb, Mark Telan, Maui Roca, and all those names I grew to revile.
The details are all sketchy now. ABS-CBN wasn’t carrying the UAAP games then. The Internet was still a few years away from really taking off so I can’t find any scores from that game online now. All I remember is that some time in the second half, Ateneo still trailed the mighty De La Salle. We were on our way to another defeat, and even as a college sophomore, I knew that it would only bring down school morale further since it was a defeat at the hands of the team from Taft Avenue.
At some point, somebody from the blue side yelled “Go Ateneo!” What surprised me wasn’t the enthusiasm that the fan showed. What was shocking was the response of a member of the Babble. This guy clad in a blue and white jacket shouted to the Ateneo crowd “’Go Ateneo!’ kayo ng ‘Go Ateneo!” eh di naman kayo nagche-cheer!” He implored us then to cheer even more since we had absolutely nothing to lose since La Salle was such an overwhelming favorite. It certainly got a rise out of the gathered crowd. Our side began to cheer in earnest, screaming “Get that ball!” and “Fight!” louder than we had at any point earlier in the game. The Babble guys even turned to the massive UST throng and mentioned that since they didn’t like DLSU either, then they should cheer with us! Sure enough, the people in yellow began back the Ateneo cheering section and aping our cheers!
I don’t remember the final score. I don’t recall who the leading scorer was. I just remember that on a Saturday afternoon in 1993, I watched Ateneo beat La Salle for the first time live at the historic Big Dome. I was in fatigues and heavy combat boots. I had a 2x3 haircut. I was an awkward teenager. But we beat the Archers in Richie Ticzon’s last game as a Blue Eagle when nobody outside that little group believed that Ateneo could do it. When Monday rolled around, it just seemed like everyone was smiling more on the campus. There were jokes made that since the losing streak against La Salle had finally ended, maybe classes would be suspended. It didn’t happen of course, but such was the importance of snapping the streak.
Since then, I’ve seen a lot of improbable things when watching my beloved Eagles. I’ve seen them blow out La Salle on a day when every shot seemed to drop. I’ve seen them advance to the Final Four for the first time, and even advance to the UAAP Finals after a long hiatus. I’ve also seen them lose heartbreakers to both strong teams as well as bottom-feeders. I can proudly say that I saw the most impossible thing that I could think off when I was in college: three Ateneo Blue Eagle championships in the span of a decade. We Ateneans have been spoiled in recent years, but those of us who lived through the dark times, we who saw heartbreak when nothing was expected of the team, we know better. Those losses have just made me appreciate the wins even more. You realize that after “the Dark Ages”, the only thing that can follow is brighter days indeed.
In my sophomore year in 1993, the Blue Eagles went through another dismal season. Although the season started with promise as Richie Ticzon and Paolo Isidro were then joined by transferees Vince Hizon and Dodot Jaworski, it turned into another nightmare season for the team from Loyola Heights. Ticzon was on his fifth and final year with the Eagles, and he had never beaten the hated Archers. This was his last chance at tasting at least a bit of old school Ateneo-La Salle glory.
My cuts for the old Reserved Officer Training Corps (ROTC) had run out and back then, Ateneo-La Salle games were only broadcast on Saturdays, when there was ROTC class on the Ateneo campus. When the schedule revealed that on the final day of round 2 of the eliminations, Ateneo would face La Salle, my blockmates and I decided on the spot that we’d overcut for the sake of this game. The weird thing for us was the game wasn’t even the main game for the day. So low had the Blue Eagles fallen in the UAAP that their classic rivalry game could only serve as an appetizer for a game between then-powerhouses UST and Adamson.
I don’t recall much from that day except that a classmate and I rushed from Loyola Heights to the Araneta Coliseum while still in our ROTC fatigues. The Ateneo contingent was tiny, probably less than 50 people, and all we had was that single bass drum to lead the cheers of the Blue Babble Battalion. In those days, the Green Archers were just on their way to becoming UST’s main rival for championships. These were the years when they were powered by Jason Webb, Mark Telan, Maui Roca, and all those names I grew to revile.
The details are all sketchy now. ABS-CBN wasn’t carrying the UAAP games then. The Internet was still a few years away from really taking off so I can’t find any scores from that game online now. All I remember is that some time in the second half, Ateneo still trailed the mighty De La Salle. We were on our way to another defeat, and even as a college sophomore, I knew that it would only bring down school morale further since it was a defeat at the hands of the team from Taft Avenue.
At some point, somebody from the blue side yelled “Go Ateneo!” What surprised me wasn’t the enthusiasm that the fan showed. What was shocking was the response of a member of the Babble. This guy clad in a blue and white jacket shouted to the Ateneo crowd “’Go Ateneo!’ kayo ng ‘Go Ateneo!” eh di naman kayo nagche-cheer!” He implored us then to cheer even more since we had absolutely nothing to lose since La Salle was such an overwhelming favorite. It certainly got a rise out of the gathered crowd. Our side began to cheer in earnest, screaming “Get that ball!” and “Fight!” louder than we had at any point earlier in the game. The Babble guys even turned to the massive UST throng and mentioned that since they didn’t like DLSU either, then they should cheer with us! Sure enough, the people in yellow began back the Ateneo cheering section and aping our cheers!
I don’t remember the final score. I don’t recall who the leading scorer was. I just remember that on a Saturday afternoon in 1993, I watched Ateneo beat La Salle for the first time live at the historic Big Dome. I was in fatigues and heavy combat boots. I had a 2x3 haircut. I was an awkward teenager. But we beat the Archers in Richie Ticzon’s last game as a Blue Eagle when nobody outside that little group believed that Ateneo could do it. When Monday rolled around, it just seemed like everyone was smiling more on the campus. There were jokes made that since the losing streak against La Salle had finally ended, maybe classes would be suspended. It didn’t happen of course, but such was the importance of snapping the streak.
Since then, I’ve seen a lot of improbable things when watching my beloved Eagles. I’ve seen them blow out La Salle on a day when every shot seemed to drop. I’ve seen them advance to the Final Four for the first time, and even advance to the UAAP Finals after a long hiatus. I’ve also seen them lose heartbreakers to both strong teams as well as bottom-feeders. I can proudly say that I saw the most impossible thing that I could think off when I was in college: three Ateneo Blue Eagle championships in the span of a decade. We Ateneans have been spoiled in recent years, but those of us who lived through the dark times, we who saw heartbreak when nothing was expected of the team, we know better. Those losses have just made me appreciate the wins even more. You realize that after “the Dark Ages”, the only thing that can follow is brighter days indeed.
