Showtime before showdown

UAAP 89 opener

MANILA, Philippines — Host Far Eastern University will set the stage ablaze today with a grand show headlined by Vice Ganda for the opening ceremony of UAAP Season 89 at the MOA Arena, before hostilities fire off tomorrow over at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

New officiating and eligibility rules, including those on foreign student-athletes and one-and-done players, will be enforced when six teams open their campaigns in an exciting opening bill at the Big Dome.

But before the games begin, the Tamaraws will stage the “Kickoff Show” headlined by FEU alums Vice Ganda and Gloc-9, followed by the parade of athletes from the eight member-schools at 5 p.m.

“We are going to put on a show. It will be a celebration of the artistic side of FEU. And after that, it’s going to be a showcase of the athletic side of FEU. This is what’s in store in Season 89,” said UAAP Season 89 president Mark Molina, also FEU’s athletic director.

With the theme “For Everyone, UAAP,” the league will retain the same logo it has used since 2021 – created by then-FEU Bachelor of Fine Arts Visual Communication student Darryl John Digal – for continuity and identity, this time accented with Mangyan beadwork traditions.

Then it’s go-time for FEU and the rest of the UAAP at the iconic Big Dome.

FEU, owner of the most titles in UAAP men’s history with 20 but last crowned in 2015, looms as a dark horse to the La Salle-UP title rivalry with an intact core led by reigning MVP Janrey Pasaol and super rookie Wilham Lawrence Cabonillas, a UAAP juniors MVP and Batang Gilas standout.

The Tamaraws’ mettle under Sean Chambers, now in his third season, will be tested against a gritty Adamson unit tomorrow at 12 noon in the curtain-raiser of the three-game opening weekend.

Reigning champion La Salle then takes on National University, followed by runner-up UP against last year’s host University of Santo Tomas in a rematch of their Season 88 Final Four duels.