In a virtual media conference held on Friday, NCAA Management Committee member Paul Supan of Jose Rizal University (JRU) revealed that the league will not be naming overall champion in its 96th Season. 

“There will be no overall champion because of the limited events. Historically, the NCAA, I believe sometime in the 60s when they didn’t have the full calendar of events, they called it a loose conference. So we’re patterning it after that,” Supan averred.

“But the results of whatever games we will be having here will be recorded,” he added.

NCAA Season 96, which is slated to formally open with an opening ceremony on Sunday, is set to feature virtual games composed of taekwondo competitions, including poomsae and speed kicking, and a chess tournament. 

There is also a proposal for individual, non-contact skills challenges for basketball and volleyball, though this has not yet been formalized.

But the development is not new for the league since it has been dealt with numerous issues throughout its history. 

Supan recalled the event during the 1960s where for three years, no general champion was named among the then-six member-schools, namely Ateneo, JRU, La Salle, Letran, Mapua, and San Beda. 

Problems that consist of unscrupulous player eligibility to interscholastic melees, plagued the league leading to disagreements between the schools themselves and the eventual cancellation of the 1962-63 season.

Then in its following season, the league observed a loose conference format where games, particularly for basketball competitions, were played in a home-and-away format, but still, no general champion was crowned at the end of its athletic calendar. 

“We’re patterning it after that,” said Supan.

The only other time the NCAA did not hand out a general champion for both the seniors and juniors divisions was in 1981-82, still due to the rampant hooliganism between the member schools.

Meanwhile, Season 96, which will be broadcasted on GTV starting this Monday, will feature poomsae competitions from June 14 to 17, followed by speed kicking from June 18 to July 5. Both the seniors and juniors division will see action in the taekwondo events.

Other games have yet to confirm their broadcast schedules.