College of Saint Benilde mentor Jerry Yee might find himself in hot water as the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) imposes a league rule that bars professional league tacticians from being a head coach in one of the member schools.
The issue was raised by Arellano University days after it lost to the Lady Blazers, 25-18, 25-12, 24-26, 25-17, last Thursday at the San Sebastian College Gym.
Yee, who also calls the shots for ZUS Coffee in the Premier Volleyball League, led Saint Benilde with three straight titles from Seasons 97 to 99 and is currently undefeated with 41 straight wins since 2020.
NCAA management committee (mancomm) chairman Hercules Callanta said they are already in talks with their volleyball committee about the matter.
“The matter is still being studied and vetted by the NCAA volleyball committee. So far, there has been an exchange of correspondence between the NCAA volleyball committee and Saint Benilde about the specific rules and their applicability,” said Callanta, who is the athletic director of Season 100 host Lyceum of the Philippines University.
“It’s only up to that point still.”
This situation feels all too familiar to Yee.
Last year, the 50-year-old mentor was suspended in Season 86 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) women’s volleyball tournament while calling the shots for the University of the East.
Yee was suspended after he moved from Adamson University, which was considered “committing acts that are inconsistent with the purposes of the Association.”
He missed the remainder of the Lady Warriors’ UAAP campaign as they finished with a 3-11 record in sixth place.
Still, all is not lost for Yee as he could still be with Saint Benilde as one of the assistant coaches.
Capital1 head coach Roger Gorayeb and Creamline head coach Sherwin Meneses, who calls the shots for San Sebastian and Arellano, respectively, are now deputies ahead of NCAA Season 100.
The Lady Blazers will face Jose Rizal University on Saturday at 3 p.m. at the San Beda University Gym.