HOUSTON, TEXAS – APRIL 04: Mikal Bridges #25 of the Villanova Wildcats cuts the net after defeating the North Carolina Tar Heels 77-74 to win the 2016 NCAA Men’s Final Four National Championship game at NRG Stadium on April 4, 2016 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Philadelphia often carries a bad reputation when it comes to sports, but during one of the worst stretches in Philly sports history, the city gets a chance to celebrate if it is willing to embrace Villanova and college sports in general.

The Villanova Wildcats capped a thrilling run to a national championship Monday night by edging North Carolina with a last-second shot from Kris Jenkins as time expired. On the way to the national title, Villanova took out one team from the Big Ten, two from the Big 12 and two more from the ACC. During that run, Villanova masterfully destroyed three opponents and took down two No. 1 seeds (Kansas and UNC) by playing a gritty style and responding to adversity when needed.

Everything about the Villanova run is something Philadelphia typically embraces in sports, but Villanova and college basketball is a bit different form the norm.

It is easy to see why Villanova’s national title run may not be received as well as you might think by some. Philadelphia is home to six different Division I college basketball programs, including Villanova. Temple and St. Joe’s, along with Penn and La Salle, make up the Big 5 with Villanova, and feel free to throw in Drexel to the City Six mix, if you please. Neither of those teams have much positive to say about Villanova. It goes back years when Rollie Massimino thought Villanova was too good to be spending time playing the other city schools in Big 5 competition. That made Villanova the elite school.

In fairness, Villanova is on top of the pedestal with two national championships in program history, which is one more than the combined total from its Big Five rivals (La Salle owns one from 1954), and the Wildcats have reached the Final Four three times since the last time any other Big Five school managed to go so deep in the tournament. The reason Villanova is perceived to be an elitist school is because Villanova is the most elite program in the city, and that makes non-Villanova people a bit jealous, if they are honest. And Philadelphia sports fans refuse to admit they are jealous.

There are a good number of Villanova people in the region, of course, but there are way more non-Villanova folks as well. Some brush aside their hate for Villanova and wish the Wildcats well. They don’t have to, of course. That is what college sports is all about. Unlike pro sports where the fans of Villanova, Temple and St. Joe’s can all come together to cheer for the Sixers or Eagles or Phillies, college allegiance runs deep. As much as they may hate to admit it, having Villanova winning the national championship has a benefit for the Big Five.

It may be years before the impact of the national championship trickles down in such a way, but the bar has been raised. Having the defending national champions in town also brings a bit more attention to individual matchups next season, one would think. But what exactly does this mean for the city of Philadelphia on a general sports landscape?

Honestly, it will be a rather large blip on the radar, unfortunately. College sports will never get the same headlines that pro sports do in Philadelphia. The championship buzz surrounding Villanova’s championship will last for a few days, but there will not be three million fans lining the streets of Broad Street to serenade the Wildcats. The sports chatter on the radio will still likely be slanted toward what the Eagles will do in the first draft under new head coach Doug Pederson. That’s just how things go in this city, which hasn’t seen a championship since 2008 and just three pro sports championships since 1980 (Phillies in 1980 and 2008, Sixers in 1983).

Villanova has won two titles since that point in time. Following a fall that saw Temple step into a rare national spotlight in football, maybe it’s time Philadelphia starts taking college sports a little more seriously.

About Kevin McGuire

Contributor to Athlon Sports and The Comeback. Previously contributed to NBCSports.com. Host of the Locked On Nittany Lions Podcast. FWAA member and Philadelphia-area resident.