Advertisement

Boyet Fernandez “adopted” in San Beda alumni homecoming rites

Since 2006, the San Beda Red Lions have won seven NCAA men’s basketball titles but under four different head coaches. Koy Banal owns the first championship in 2006 that snapped a long 28-year dry spell for San Beda in the NCAA. The next four titles were amassed during Frankie Lim’s five-year tenure as chief bench tactician. In 2012, Ronnie Magsanoc took over from Lim and brought the Red Lions to the Promised Land. Last year, it was Boyet Fernandez’ turn to steer the school to a fourth straight NCAA crown.

But of the four mentors, only Fernandez is not a San Beda product. He played college ball for the Colegio San Agustin of Bacolod City. Banal and Lim donned the red and white jerseys of San Beda in the NCAA seniors division, while Magsanoc was a star Red Cub before he suited up for the UP Fighting Maroons. The last non-Bedan to coach the Red Lions before Fernandez was Nash Racela in 2004.

During the San Beda College’s Grand Alumni Homecoming celebrations on February 1 however, Fernandez was “adopted” as one of their own by the sponsoring High School Class of 1989, effectively making him an honorary member of the batch. In the same high school class is fellow basketball coach and PBA ace guard Emmanuel “Boybits” Victoria, who starred for the Red Lions in the early 1990’s.

“Coach Boyet embraced the Red Lions team wholeheartedly, understanding each player’s personality while working to further strengthen their camaraderie and improving their skills. In his first year as San Beda coach, he already brought honor to the school by leading the team to the 2013 NCAA championship. The San Beda High School Class of ’89 is proud to adopt Coach Boyet Fernandez as our Bedan brother,” said Batch '89 president Richard Guevara.

Also honored in the same event is outgoing Red Lions team captain Rome Dela Rosa for being a model athlete. Just two weeks before the event, Dela Rosa also received the highest individual award from the Philippine Collegiate Champions League (PCCL) – the Model National Collegiate Player of 2013. “This award is given to the player who served as a model in terms of academic performance and sportsmanship,” said PCCL Chairman Rey Gamboa. Dela Rosa became the first player from the NCAA to receive this award. The previous winners of the award were Ateneo’s Noy Baclao (2009), Kirk Long (2011) and Nico Salva (2012), and the University of Cebu’s June Mar Fajardo (2010).

Fernandez was elated when he was met on stage to receive the honor by former national youth squad teammate Victoria. “It’s really a great honor to be adopted by the San Beda High School Class of ’89 and be an honorary Bedan. I promise the batch and the entire Bedan community that I will do my very best to be worthy of being called a Bedan. Thank you very much for all the support and trust,” said Fernandez.

Meanwhile, Fernandez revealed that the Red Lions will have a busy pre-season schedule that includes participation in pocket tournaments in Cebu and Iloilo, tune-up games in Guam or Korea, and the annual summer training camp abroad. For the past four years, the Red Lions have been training at the Impact Basketball Camp of NBA trainer Joe Abunassar in Los Angeles, California. This year however, they are looking to try new camps. Among the choices are the Stanford University Basketball Camp at San Francisco, California, the Triple Threat Academy at Oakland, California, the national training camp in New Zealand under Gilas Pilipinas consultant Tab Baldwin, and the national training camp in Lithuania under former Lithuanian national coach Rutenis Paulauskas.

The Red Lions are also hoping to improve on their third place finish in the Fil Oil Cup pre-season tournament last year when they battle other NCAA and UAAP teams in the same tournament that is set to commence this April.