By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Norman Miguel’s biggest break in his volleyball coaching career had just begun after accelerating to the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) confirmed on September 17, 2024.
After steering the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs to two UAAP championship titles, the savvy tactician is set to embark on a new journey after accepting the head coaching post for the Chery Tiggo Crossovers.
Miguel will be replacing Kungfu Reyes as the franchise’s newest mentor and will officially take over when the 2024-2025 PVL season kicks off.
Reyes, who will juggle his UAAP duties as the head coach of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses, will remain with the Crossovers as Miguel’s lead assistant.
Both coaches are already familiar with each other as they faced during the past UAAP season’s grand finals match, with Miguel getting the better of Reyes during NU’s championship campaign.
“For me, it’s about time na ma-test ko yung skills ko, kung saan tayo aabot sa ganitong level. Yun din, exploring na rin para sa career ko, how is it like coaching a professional team,” said Miguel.
Miguel carries with him vast experience in the coaching field, leading the Lady Bulldogs to the UAAP golden trophy in seasons 84 and 86.
In a three-year span, Miguel was able to bring two championship trophies and one silver medal finish to the NU community.
Chery Tiggo hopes that Miguel will help bring that winning mentality to the Crossovers who are under a dry spell in the PVL as they are yet to win a championship title in three years.
“First of all, wine-welcome natin si Coach Norman. As a champion tactician ng National University, yung experience niya na dadalhin sa team, malaking bagay,” said Reyes.