After Villanova’s championship win Monday night and the ensuing celebration, discussion began about how to honor those players who have now won multiple titles as key contributors, the first Villanova Wildcats to do so(Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, and Phil Booth). For 847 people (and counting!), the first step is to rename a pair of recently constructed bridges on campus the “Mikal Bridges”, after the All-American and All-Final Four team captain. The petition, addressed to school president Father Peter Donahue, reads as follows:

“Villanova has recently completed a new pedestrian bridge over Lancaster Ave and also are the 2018 National Basketball Champions! To honor one of the key pieces for the team, we propose naming the new bridge and the Septa bridge conjoined to it over the Norristown High Speed Line the “Mikal Bridges” after projected lottery pick Mikal Bridges. Bridges’s defensive versatility, shooting ability and wingspan have been an integral part of this Villanova team and we believe he deserves this honor.”

The petition was started by Nathan Brown, a sophomore biology/philosophy major from Spartanburg, South Carolina. For Brown, this petition seemed to be a fitting way to honor him. “My friend Brad came up with the idea to call the new pedestrian bridge the Mikal Bridge after the Alabama game. Then I realized the bridges were built separately and technically it’s two bridges, so I decided to make the petition once they won the championship. Mikal is one of the faces of Villanova basketball and deserves the honor”. Brown was also pleasantly surprised by the amount of support that the petition has gotten saying “I really appreciate everyone signing this and the overwhelming support, because I certainly don’t know all the people who have signed so far. I think it’s unlikely the school officially names the bridge this, but the Pit and the Oreo aren’t the official names either, so the goal is to make it a de facto name for the new bridge”. Finally, Brown has a message for Mikal Bridges himself: “I’d really appreciate it if you helped us out here”.

Visit the petition, and join the “Mikal Bridges” movement!