Beyond the game: How Nowhere to Go but UP helped turn things around for Fighting Maroons

Several University of the Philippines alumni came together in 2014 to give back to sports and the school. 

That year was a season to remember for the Fighting Maroons as they held a bonfire celebration at the Sunken Garden following a 77-64 victory over Adamson University as they halted then a painful 27-game losing streak.

While it put an end to a string of heartbreaks, it also sparked a new beginning for the squad. 

That very same year, Nowhere to go but UP entered the picture.

The organization, composed of dedicated UP alumni across different backgrounds, was formed in bid to provide support to the Fighting Maroons as the squad eyed back then to turn their fortunes around in the UAAP. 

"We didn't really have high expectations from our basketball team." Jed Eva III, chairman of Nowhere to go but UP, told GMA News Online during their 10th anniversary celebration last Tuesday at the Ang Bahay ng Alumni. 

"But it’s one thing to see your team struggling, but when we learned that the team wasn’t even fed properly, that was different kasi these are athletes who work hard to represent the university."

Eva stressed winning titles wasn't their initial goal for the team. 

"To become a championship team wasn't one of the initial objectives. That only followed. Ang gusto lang talaga namin ay bigyan ng nararapat na suporta ang team," he added. 

With their support, the Fighting Maroons rose from being underdogs to champions. 

In Season 84, at the height of the pandemic, UP dethroned three-time defending champion Ateneo de Manila University to seize its first title since 1986. Then in the next two editions, UP made it to the finals, but they lost to Ateneo and La Salle on the two occasions. 

"And it didn’t come overnight, we struggled with one win, three wins, five wins, and so on. But the point was to build on that," Eva, a graduate of Fine Arts in 1999, shared.

"Lo and behold, we were patient, we persevered, and the product was the championship two years ago."

Eva also underscored that their investment in UP was rooted from the fact that the school is known for its excellence in many aspects. And they wanted to do the same in sports. 

"I think looking back, what’s very frustrating for us alumni was there’s a lot of pride here. We are taught to excel in all fields. We have produced the most number of presidents, the most number of chief justices," Eva recalled. 

"How can we lead in these areas, and not excel in sports? Hindi kami naniniwala na ‘oh, okay na kami dito sa intellectual pursuits, itong sports hindi na importante’."

Ten years since its inception, Nowhere to go but UP has been living up to that mantra. The foundation doesn't only support the men's basketball team, but all varsity teams and coaches as well. 

"Our goal, ultimately, is to make sure that all of our teams are given the support which they need to be able to excel in their respective fields in the same way that we, alumni, are able to excel in our own fields," Eva said. 

"Ang gingawa ng Nowhere To go But Up now, 10 years after we started it, is to raise funds for the other teams. For example ‘yung merchandise na binebenta ng Nowhere To Go But Up, because of the popularity of the basketball team, all of these proceeds go to the other teams and athletes.

Mikee Reyes, who was part of the first team that got to experience the support from the foundation, agreed, saying that Nowhere to go but UP's entry made a huge difference for the school and the program. 

"2014 sila pumasok so that was my last year. ‘Yung talagang pagpasok nila, nakita agad ‘yung pagbabago," Reyes, who was part of the bonfire team, said in a separate interview. 

"Meron na kaming shoes then pinadala kami sa Taiwan, may pagkain na. May difference talaga and kita mo ‘yung progress."

—JKC, GMA Integrated News