The men go first in this game

IT IS 8 a.m. on a Sunday morning of the first playing day of 2015.

You might think this is hardly the time for any sporting event, but in the world of multisports competition like the UAAP, you play when the schedule demands.

The men’s volleyball teams are on the court at Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan. They take the morning schedule of the volleyball games while the more popular women’s teams take over in the afternoon.

The TV schedule has definitely played a role in making this happen but the enthusiastic and energetic young men on the court don’t seem to mind.

As we have seen in most college sports, the athletes are more than happy to be playing their games, regardless of whether the TV cameras and other media are following them or not. Of course, the added media attention would help but the game’s the thing and so they play on.

As a handful of friends, family and pocket-sized versions of cheering sections try to fill up the empty seats of the venue, one wonders what can be done to also boost the men’s game and make it as popular as the women’ s version.

The first key is great performers. The UAAP is not short on excellent male players, a tradition it has maintained through the years. Presently, there are bright lights like Ateneo’s Marck Espejo, last year’s top rookie and MVP. In a four-set win over University of the East, Espejo was a marked man but still managed to defy the defenses thrown at him. The high-flying spiker was like a storm you knew that was coming and you couldn’t do a thing about it.

Then there was back-to-back champion National University with Fauzi Ismali, Season 76 Finals MVP Peter Torres and Vince Mangulabnan. These three are epitomes of the athleticism and power that the men’s game has to offer.

The second ingredient is to keep the game in the public eye. For now, the exposure given to the men’s college game is sufficient. The men’s championship matches ABS-CBN has showcased through the last decade are a good additional serving to the women’s game.

The Philippine Superliga and lately the Shakey’s V-League have staged men’s tournaments aside from their regular women’s fare. Good club teams like Systema, Instituto Estetico and others reveal that there is life for players long after their college playing days are over.

We hope to see some of the military men’s teams in the future. The armed forces sports teams have always been the place to go to for athletes who don’t have any professional or club leagues after their college years.

Unless some really loaded group or patron comes along, it’s best for the men’s game for now to stay within the infrastructure of the existing leagues. The women’s game has already ignited the interest and it doesn’t harm the men’s version at all to be playing in the same playgrounds. It might be fatal for the men’s game if it puts up its own league hastily and literally starts from scratch.

Volleyball is alive and the fans trek to the venue as early as 8 a.m. to catch the games. Most of them will most likely stay on for the women’s games in the afternoon. This is good enough for the men’s game for now.

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