Esports is about a lot of things. It’s the challenge and intense competition of players teaming up or playing alone to dominate the other player. It builds communication, teamwork, and takes a great deal of practice and work. It’s the rush you feel when you defeat another school’s team, too! Elon University in North Carolina is looking to gain recognition and funding for their esports squad now!

Whether it’s in baseball or Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, there’s something to be said for competition. There are so many ways to compete in esports now, too, with fighters like Street Fighter and Smash Bros., shooters like Call of Duty, or team-games like League of Legends. It’s not easy to break into, but perhaps Elon University can do it.

Elon University has a gorgeous campus. I have a lot of fond memories of being there in high school for orchestra competitions. But we’re here to talk video games!

What Will It Cost?

The minimum amount of funding the Elon Esports club needs is $10,000 if funded by Campus Recreation and Wellness. The money would cover them for four pcs and gaming setup. Right now, the team features members of the sports club and is in discussion to classify as a club sport for next year. Right now, they are a programming club, which does not make sense.

Connor Simpson, a junior and president of Elon Esports, sees a very thin line between traditional sports and esports. “The mental effort of those split-second decisions is what classifies to me video games as sports,” Simpson said. “They don’t require as much physically, but the reaction time is fully there. It is a lot to ask for money, but it’s something that once we get it, we can just go.”

The club has existed for seven years now. There were only five people in the club when Simpson joined in his freshman year. Back then, Elon University changed how they received the Internet. “Three years ago, was when the club just died,” Simpson said. “They pulled out all the ethernet on campus — every PC, they turned into a Mac.”

According to Simpson, wireless connections create lag during video games, which affects a player’s precision and timing when competing. PCs also offer a more stable connection as opposed to Macs for gamers.

But now Simpson is the leader of the club. It has 60 active members, which is no mean feat. They even have a sponsorship now! How did they get a sponsor (Game Fuel by Mountain Dew) before sponsorship from their school? Come on, Elon University, get it together!

What do they play, though? League of Legends, Super Smash Bros., and Rainbow Six: Siege. The games have their teams that represent Elon Esports. The Siege team ranks second out of eight in the Collegiate Esports Association: Siege. That’s no mean feat, and we’re glad to see it.

“We are currently in the top of our division in the one tournament that we knew we were going to be playing,” Simpson said. “That’s a tournament with 19 different divisions and eight teams each.”

Elon Esports was also invited to a College Rainbow Six League tournament. Though they did not place into the competition, they were still invited as one of the top 32 teams in the nation.

“Technically, we’re among the top 32 teams in the nation,” Simpson said. “There are other teams in the tournament that we’ve played before and have either gotten really close to beating with a different roster or beaten. We could be top 20 in the nation.”

Growth and Change

Rochelle Ford, dean of the School of Communications, asked faculty to include esports in their curriculums and discussions. At least, the school is looking for ways to introduce esports to students.

“We’re looking at trying to do a J-Term or an intensive weekend or a master class on this topic,” Ford said. “We are now sharing job opportunities and internships with a lot of the esports companies, including the one in Cary, Epic Games.”

Ford believes that esports can be an interdisciplinary opportunity across several schools of study, such as engineering, design, management and more. They could connect, which would be a terrific idea. The notion that esports is more than just gaming is an important one.

The university is also discussing where they can house the team on campus, but no decision has been made yet. Despite the possibility of advancements for the team, Ford said Elon University is not looking to have an official NCAA esports team.

“That’s not a desire of the university,” Ford said. “It was meant to be more of a fan engagement opportunity.” She said there were possibilities of having halftime esports matches during basketball games or setting up a gaming area in the lounge area of the Schar Center to entertain fans.

Now, we’d like to see them enter NCAA esports, but we’ll see what comes of it. For now, they’re at least talking about how they can grow and improve. That’s where things begin. Not simply shutting people out is the way to do things. The team practices twice a week and has a few games each week, so they’re working on improving.

After searching through PhoenixCONNECT and finding Elon Esports, freshman John Spitznagel became a member of the team.

“On game days, we either get food before or after the game just as a team and then we warm up an hour before just to get our mechanics warm and our minds focused on the game,” Spitznagel said. “It’s a good balance between school and just playing video games.”

So, it sounds like it is a sound start. It’s been a long road for Elon Esports, but it sounds like after all this time, things are changing and improving.