FEU coach Chambers uses placards for calling plays
PBA legend-turned-coach Sean Chambers may have lost in his University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) debut but he still had the biggest impact in terms of innovation to the Philippine coaching scene.
The 59-year-old Mr. Chambers, an iconic import for the defunct Alaska in the PBA, introduced placards as a way of calling plays in Far Eastern University’s (FEU) 59-47 loss against Adamson University in the UAAP Season 87 opening weekend.
Photos of renowned players, including NBA’s Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks and the Portland Trailblazers’ logo, symbols and numbers were among the first placards used as playcalls by Mr. Chambers, who patterned it after college football in the US.
“It’s one of the things they do because of the sound of the crowd and the noise (in American college football). We’re trying to run a play for a specific player and they can’t hear me so we put up a sign that they all know what that sign is,” explained the six-time PBA champion.
Obviously, the new way of play calls didn’t bear fruit right away as FEU stumbled in an expected bright season after a strong first half but Mr. Chambers vowed his wards would be better from here on, including a change in set of placards for anti-play stealing and scouting purposes.
“That’s the secret but we would change it up. We may come up with a different sign next time or we’ll change the name of the player. But that’s what you do. It’s something that I think will be beneficial for a year especially if we get into the win streak and we start filling up the gym,” he added.
And don’t be surprised if the placards would feature the images of his former teammates and now life-long friends in Alaska under the watch of his beloved mentor Tim Cone, now the Gilas Pilipinas mentor where he also serves as a deputy.
“I’m sure we’ll have a Johnny Abarrientos play out there. A Jojo Lastimosa and maybe a Jeffrey Cariaso when we run our Jet play. We’ll use some of those guys but we gotta keep the other coaches on their toes and not give them all our secrets,” Mr. Chambers beamed.
Mr. Chambers added that for now, FEU will utilize the new tactics for the entire season to familiarize his team faster with five rookies in his first year at the helm of the Tamaraws that also include Mr. Abarrientos as assistant coach.
The Tamaraws then go from there with hopes of reviving their winning tradition under a proven winner himself in Mr. Chambers, who’s out for payback and breakthrough win against National University on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“I feel extremely blessed to be in this situation to get a chance to actually live out a dream of coaching a UAAP game. I cannot be more grateful. This was a first game experience for the team as well and I expect them all to be better for the next game,” he vowed. — John Bryan Ulanday