UAAP: Olsen Racela is new FEU Tamaraws coach

FILE PHOTO

Another Racela will take the helm for Far Eastern University.

Olsen Racela has been named as the new coach for the Tamaraws, the school’s social media accounts confirmed late Tuesday night.

The former San Miguel playmaker will take the position left by his brother Nash, who has been appointed as head coach for TNT in the PBA.

READ: Nash Racela takes over TNT coaching chores, replaces Uichico

“It’s a big responsibility. I’ve always wanted to coach a college team,” Racela, an Ateneo alumnus, told INQUIRER. “I find fulfillment in coaching the youth. It’s a great opportunity for me. I’m here to continue the program of coach Nash.”

The 46-year-old has made a name for himself as one of the league’s elite playmakers in the late 1990s and the 2000s, steering the Beermen to nine PBA championships before calling it a career in 2011.

Racela previously coached the Energen under-16 national youth team along with his brother Nash back in 2012.

He also served as head coach of then-Petron in the PBA in 2012, before being replaced by Gee Abanilla in the 2013 Governors’ Cup.

READ: Olsen Racela relished in ‘first game’ as Petron coach

Racela would soon shift to the role of an assistant coach for Tim Cone in Purefoods and now, Ginebra.

He will be inheriting a Tamaraws squad that missed out of a return trip to the Finals after a loss to Ateneo Blue Eagles in the Final Four.

FEU is coming off a memorable four-year run with Nash Racela at the helm, culminating in a championship in UAAP Season 78. with reports from Cedelf P. Tupas/ TVJ