Professional club coaches Jerry Yee and Aying Esteban are listed as head coaches of their respective teams in the NCAA as the Season 101 volleyball tournament opened on Friday.
The women’s squads of Yee’s De La Salle-College of College of Saint Benilde and Esteban’s Mapua University battled in the season opener, with the Lady Blazers squeaking past the Lady Cardinals, 25-21, 20-25, 25-14, 23-25, 17-15, at the San Andres Gym in Manila.
Yee, who calls the shots for ZUS Coffee in the PVL, and Esteban, who was recently named as head coach of Galeries Tower, are identified as head coaches on the stat sheet released after the match, which is a departure from last season when head coaches in pro clubs were not allowed to be named as head coaches in the collegiate league.
Back in Season 100, Yee was relegated from head coach to assistant coach after one game after Arellano University raised an inquiry on pro coaches calling the shots for NCAA squads. The NCAA committee back then said that Yee did not violate the said rule.
“Actually, hindi ko alam,” Yee said when asked about the reason behind the new ruling for this season.
“Titles lang naman ‘yun,” he added.
A source with knowledge of the situation, however, told GMA News Online that coaches calling the shots in pro teams are now allowed to coach NCAA teams as well, starting this season.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
