The Return of the King
The University of the East hopes that an old hand who led the Big Red Machine its last bout of glory more than two decades ago will once again return them to the Promised Land.
The UE community came out en masse to welcome new Men’s Basketball Team Head Coach Jerry Codiñera last Friday January 14 in festivities befit a king.
Codiñera was a three sport star for UE during his high school and college years. He followed his father, baseball great Filomeno “Boy” Codiñera in UE’s junior and senior baseball teams while also competing in the men’s track and field team. But Codiñera made a name for himself in basketball where he led the UE Pages to back-to-back UAAP Juniors crowns in 1981 and 1982 then later with Allan Caidic to give the seniors Warriors two UAAP basketball crowns in 1984 & 85.
Codiñera, who earned the moniker “The Defense Minister” in the PBA because of his unparalleled defensive prowess, was heralded as one of the PBA 25 Greatest Players, alongside fellow Caidic and Robert Jaworski during the league’s 25th Anniversary.
The UE honored Codiñera as one of the Diamond Jubilee Alumni Achievers in the field of sports during UE’s 2006 Diamond Jubilee Awards.
Codiñera, who served as an assistant for former UP head coach Aboy Castro with the Maroons from 2008-10, assumes the UE Red Warriors coaching chores effective this January, replacing Lawrence Chongson whose contract expired December 2010.
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