The sensation of gaming has taken over the sports league, and Dallas College is not falling behind. All seven campuses are preparing for a new season of competitions. Skylar McCort, a Dallas College eSports Coach and better known to her players as Coach Glitch, said eSports will only continue to grow at Dallas College in the future.
McCort has been with the program since its early beginnings when she was a student, and eSports was a simple club. Although there is no clear eSports pathway internally at Dallas College, McCort said she hopes players in the program can pursue eSports at four-year colleges like The University of Texas at Dallas, which offer scholarships, or get in the spotlight of professional gaming organizations such as Envy Gaming and Complexity.
Mark Cuban and Jerry Jones, known for participating in other Texas sports, are big names in eSports. Arlington even has an Esports Stadium.
While not new to Dallas College, the esports team is gearing up with new plans for the semester. The heads of eSports are ready to break the social stigma around competing in video games. McCort said: “It’s sometimes stigmatized as just sitting around playing games, again, so some people don’t understand it. Or don’t see the value sometimes. But our students, you know, they work very, very hard. They train very long hours, and they go out there and they really do represent Dallas College”
McCort said she is ready to expand from participating in the National Junior College Athletic Association to building a pathway for students to get their foot in the door toward a future in esports.
Various games in their respective leagues offer tournament circuits specifically made for collegiate teams and tier-two organizations. Involvement in these tournaments can put players in the spotlight to be scouted by professional organizations, similar to how other college athletes get scouted for pro-play.
“The only requirement is that you try out, eligibility is 12 credit hours, that generally equals four classes, and have a 2.0 GPA.” McCort said.
Glitch said she would love to expand toward events like in-house tournaments in various games to expand student involvement as the program grows.
McCort said, “Currently, it’s still scholastic. But we are hoping to start hosting in-house tournaments where we can invite other schools, other players and create that local grassroots program where people can come and participate.”
All campuses offer games most of their players want. Brookhaven offers League of Legends, one of the most popular games in the world.
There has been an increase in student interest in eSports at Dallas College. McCort said: “This semester, we had an influx so the first couple semesters it was, you know, anywhere from 30 to 50 students per semester. This semester, we had an influx of about 300.
