--- title: Villanova Fans Scale Greased Poles After NCAA Win description: After Villanova beat Michigan to win the NCAA national championship, fans at the Philadelphia-area school scaled greased poles to celebrate. canonical: https://time.com/5225862/philadelphia-greased-poles-villanova-win/ author: Jennifer Calfas article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-04-03T12:06:49.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T19:51:18.735Z article:section: Sports og:title: They Greased Light Poles Outside Philadelphia Again After Villanova’s Big Win. Students Climbed Them Anyway og:description: Once again, a greased pole won't stop a determined fan. og:url: https://time.com/5225862/philadelphia-greased-poles-villanova-win/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc7bf44d7a1811e4a/69892ca8fb4eac7632896385/villanova-fans.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5568 og:image:height: 3132 og:image:alt: Michigan v Villanova og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: They Greased Light Poles Outside Philadelphia Again After Villanova’s Big Win. Students Climbed Them Anyway twitter:description: Once again, a greased pole won't stop a determined fan. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc7bf44d7a1811e4a/69892ca8fb4eac7632896385/villanova-fans.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # They Greased Light Poles Outside Philadelphia Again After Villanova’s Big Win. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Apr 3, 2018 12:06 PM UTC  Villanova Wildcats fans celebrate after the 2018 NCAA Men's Final Four National Championship game against the Michigan Wolverines at the Alamodome on April 2, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Brett Wilhelm/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) Villanova Wildcats fans celebrate after the 2018 NCAA Men's Final Four National Championship game against the Michigan Wolverines at the Alamodome on April 2, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Brett Wilhelm/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)Brett Wilhelm—NCAA Photos via Getty Images by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Apr 3, 2018 12:06 PM UTC When Villanova won the school’s second NCAA Men’s Basketball National Championship in three years, students in Philadelphia celebrated in the way Philadelphians celebrate best – [by climbing up greased utility poles](http://time.com/5133253/philadelphia-mayhem-eagles-win/). Villanova University students and fans took to the streets around the Philadelphia-area school late Monday night after the Wildcats beat the University of Michigan, 79-62, to secure the national title in San Antonio. Much like how workers greased poles around Philadelphia to prevent fans from scaling them after the [Eagles’s Super Bowl win in February](http://time.com/5139360/philadelphia-eagles-champions-teams-end-drought/), utility poles near Villanova were covered in grease to halt the potentially dangerous form of celebration. Once again, fans conquered the greased poles, according to videos shared by ABC 6 reporter Christie Ileto (who, back in February, [also shared](https://twitter.com/Christie%5FIleto/status/960357364070256643) a video of an Eagles fan scaling a pole post-win). > [](https://twitter.com/Christie%5FIleto/status/981016726635675649) > [](https://twitter.com/Christie%5FIleto/status/981028699800817665) The city of Philadelphia used Crisco after ahead of the Eagles’ NFC championship game against the Minnesota Vikings earlier this year — but that didn’t work. The city then used the more-intense hydraulic fluid before the Super Bowl. Again, that still didn’t stop determined fans. “I don’t know what they’re using but some poor guy from Villanova has to smear it all over the place,” Radnor Police Lt. Chris Flanagan [told the Philadelphia _Inquirer_](http://www.philly.com/philly/news/villanova-basketball-ncaa-championship-michigan-fans-greased-poles-20180402.html) ahead of the March Madness championship game Monday. “We just don’t want anybody falling, that’s the biggest problem.” > [](https://twitter.com/erinK%5Fmccarthy/status/981013298131988482) > [](https://twitter.com/David%5FMalandra/status/981024112020738048) > [](https://twitter.com/PeteBannan/status/980980236199264256) There were a handful of other problems as raucous fans took to the streets after the big win. Some fans set up a small bonfire in the street and the celebrations resulted in two arrests, police told the Associated Press. Back in 2016, more than 20 arrests were made after Villanova won the NCAA championship, according to the _Inquirer_. Then, four people were arrested for assaulting a police horse — an act the police said would result in felony charges if it happened again. Villanova students had another reason to celebrate late into the night. The university cancelled classes Tuesday, [according to CBS Philadelphia](http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2018/04/02/villanova-beats-michigan/). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5225862/philadelphia-greased-poles-villanova-win/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5225862/philadelphia-greased-poles-villanova-win/"},"headline":"They Greased Light Poles Outside Philadelphia Again After Villanova’s Big Win. 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