The University of the Philippines’ (UP) recent three-year partnership with PUMA goes beyond contract signing and the distribution of apparel.

Paolo Misa, country manager of the German sports apparel brand, said that with most of his staff also UP graduates, the talks became much easier as they all shared the same wavelength.

The sports apparel signed its partnership with UP last 14 June in time for the opening of Season 88 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball tournament.

“So all of us are very excited that this project will continue because it’s our time to give back to the university. Nowhere To Go But UP, they’re a huge part of why this partnership happened,” Misa, a former varsity football player for the Maroons, said during an episode of “Off the Court” on Thursday.

“So a lot of their time, it’s really voluntary work. So we do our meetings with them.”

The Maroons are neck-deep into their title defense bid as they are currently in Serbia for a 17-day training camp.

Leading this batch are Harold Alarcon, Gerry Abadiano, Terrence Fortea, Gani Stevens and Rey Remogat, who will make his debut.

UP hopes to get another title despite the departure of veterans JD Cagulangan, Quentin Milora Brown, Aldous Torculas and Francis Lopez.

Misa said working with his alma mater made him nostalgic about his student-athlete days as he would frequently visit the campus for meetings.

“When we were working, it didn’t even feel like work with UP. It’s a walk down memory lane. I got to visit the campus a lot,” Misa said.

“Although the work doesn’t stop here, we’re very excited because we’re already starting to build the merchandise for the team, not just for UP, but also for FEU (Far Eastern University) in preparation for this Season 88 of the UAAP.”