Jay Wright On Parade Turnout: 'We Were Shocked'
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - It was cold and warm at the same time Friday in Center City for Villanova's victory parade.
The chilly, brisk wind was balanced by the blazing reception given to the Wildcats by the estimated 60,000 people who turned out for the ceremonies.
The national championship winners, waving and showing off their new hardware from atop an open-air double-decker bus, amid wild cheers from the throngs spilling into Market Street from the sidewalks west of Dilworth Park:
"As we got closer and closer to City Hall, it just kept growing and growing," said Villanova coach Jay Wright.
READ: Jay Wright: 'Today, Philadelphia Is A Part Of Nova Nation!'
Wright says the team was supposed to get off the bus at 17th Street, to shake hands and kiss babies, "and the police said it's just too big, it's uncontrollable."
But that wasn't even the most impressive turnout.
"When we saw this here at City Hall, we were shocked," Wright said.
The entire plaza and surrounding streets, a sea of blue-and-white, chucking streamers, chanting 'Nova Nation.'
Wright joked it was more stunning than the Kris Jenkins three-point shot that captured the title for the Wildcats.
"We've seen this for the professional teams," he says. "I don't think I ever thought an entire city would get behind a college team like this. We're very humbled. We really thank the city of Philadelphia for this -- this is amazing."
