OT: Rise of Esports, collegiate level

[TopSecretBoiler]

Well if you live under a rock you may not have noticed that espn broadcasted a League of Legends final a while back that drew more viewers than a World Series game. I saw this article:http://www.espn.co.uk/esports/story/_/id/15099566/uc-irvine-launches-esports-arena
I think Purdue should jump on this. This is going to be bigger than traditional sports in no time. So would this be a club thing or fall under the Athletic Department? What do you guys think about it?

 

[Dryfly88]

I'm old so I hate it!

My 19 and 22 year old sons would love it.

 

[TopSecretBoiler]

I'm old so I hate it!

ya...i worry this will be the general reaction from Purdue leadership. For once in my life I'd like to see Purdue get out in front of something.

 

[B-Westy]

ya...i worry this will be the general reaction from Purdue leadership. For once in my life I'd like to see Purdue get out in front of something.

There's already a League of Legends club at Purdue. I think we have a team that competes in the "NACS" (North American Collegeiate Series).

 

[TopSecretBoiler]

There's already a League of Legends club at Purdue. I think we have a team that competes in the "NACS" (North American Collegeiate Series).

That's cool. So can we turn this into scholarships, and facilities, and become a top destination for serious gamers? Or are we gonna wait until 100 other universities already do it?

 

[TC4THREE]

I'd almost rather start a men's soccer program than this. Almost....

 

[JohnHoosierr]

Is this serious? Scholarships to sit around and play video games? I mean I like me some mw2 as the next guy but this is pretty lol.

 

[B-Westy]

That's cool. So can we turn this into scholarships, and facilities, and become a top destination for serious gamers? Or are we gonna wait until 100 other universities already do it?

A lot of universities are already doing it. Robert Morris out of Chicago I think...has already made scholarships available to these guys. They have an LoL team & practice facilities.

Here's an article on that.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-robert-morris-video-game-championship-20150501-story.html

Here's a map with the all the teams that compete on the collegiate level through the company "Riot."

http://promo.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/nacc-2015/

But most of these are just club teams and only a handful have been made into actually "sports" teams that are given scholarships.

It's interesting but I'd definitely rather us get Lacrosse, Men's Soccer, Hocky, or something first before we start pouring money into this.

It's a nice thing to do at a club level & gives schools a chance to compete but not sure if it's worth being funded for.

 

[TopSecretBoiler]

Is this serious? Scholarships to sit around and play video games? I mean I like me some mw2 as the next guy but this is pretty lol.

it's not really any more outlandish than a scholarship for throwing a ball through a hoop.

 

[TC4THREE]

it's not really any more outlandish than a scholarship for throwing a ball through a hoop.

We don't do that. If you'd been paying attention, Painter gives out his scholarships for defensive ability alone.

 

[BoilerBiker]

Question on tournament prize money
If a student is at a school where it's considered a sport (plus being on scholarship), they could still earn winnings because it's not an 'NCAA sport' right?

 

[TopSecretBoiler]

Question on tournament prize money
If a student is at a school where it's considered a sport (plus being on scholarship), they could still earn winnings because it's not an 'NCAA sport' right?

Good question. I don't think they do if they are on scholarship. I think the companies are giving scholarship prizes to the college tournaments. So in a way they are still winning it, it just has to go toward their education. A lot of the kids are on partial scholarships, so the winnings would make that up.

 

[*4purdue*]

There's already a League of Legends club at Purdue. I think we have a team that competes in the "NACS" (North American Collegeiate Series).

What's the coaches name... I need to start calling for his head.

 

[TC4THREE]

What's the coaches name... I need to start calling for his head.

Whoever it is, he's under-performing.

 

[IndySouthsider]

Using the word sport rather loosely!

 

[PUQBMan.]

Good question. I don't think they do if they are on scholarship. I think the companies are giving scholarship prizes to the college tournaments. So in a way they are still winning it, it just has to go toward their education. A lot of the kids are on partial scholarships, so the winnings would make that up.

I don't see why they couldn't. Illegal benefits is an NCAA thing. It would be no different than someone on an academic scholarship winning a prize for something scholarly.