Gaming setup in Room M1158.
Dallas College is embracing the global gaming fever and is preparing all its seven campuses for the new gaming season. Skylar McCort, a Dallas College eSports Coach, also known as Coach Glitch, believes that eSports will only continue to surge at Dallas College in the future.
McCort, a former student and participant in the genesis of the program, is hopeful that students in the program will have opportunities to pursue eSports from Dallas College to four-year colleges like The University of Texas at Dallas, which offer scholarships, or be spotted by professional gaming organizations such as Envy Gaming and Complexity.
Famous Texas sports figures such as Mark Cuban and Jerry Jones are also involved in eSports, and Arlington now houses an Esports Stadium.
Although eSports is not new to Dallas College, the eSports team is readying itself with new strategies for the term. They aim to break social stigmas around competitive video gaming.
McCort is set on expanding the eSports bounds from participating in the National Junior College Athletic Association to providing a gateway for the students keen to secure their future in esports.
Numerous leagues offer exclusive tournaments specifically designed for university teams and tier-two organizations. Participation in these tournaments could catch the attention of professional organizations scouting for new talents.
McCort pointed out the only prerequisites for joining the team: try out, complete 12 credit hours, and maintain a 2.0 GPA.
Coach Glitch looks forward to hosting in-house events like gaming tournaments to increase student participation as the eSports program grows.
She added, “Currently our focus is scholastic, but we aspire to host in-house tournaments where we can invite students from other schools and local grassroots programs to participate.”
Each campus offers games that are widely popular with their students. For instance, Brookhaven provides League of Legends, one of the world’s most popular games.
Dallas College has seen a rise in demand for eSports. This semester saw a surge of about 300 students interested in the program compared to a usual of 30 to 50.