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Kettering actively recruits individuals to compete for the school and schol arships are available for prospective stu dents, offering up to $4,000 a year. eSports is growing at an enormous pace and has seen the MEC, which started with eight members in Michi gan, grow to nearly 20 schools within two years. “Michigan is the state that is leading the country in competitive eS ports,” adds Nowaczyk. “Our programs are second to none. Having a good

program can be a big boon to a small college.”Twitch streaming and YouTube channels can bring in

much needed cash while tournament prize amounts continue to increase. For sports traditionalists, the value of eSports can be lost. After all, video gaming doesn’t offer true physical interaction; however, Nowaczyk dis agrees. eSports involves teamwork and skill just as much as any other compe tition – with one difference. “We func tion as any other athletic department would; I act as athletic director and head coach. We practice, and our team members must meet academic goals to compete,” he explains. “Most of our biggest tournaments are run in much the same way as March Madness or the World Cup, where a team is placed into a group and the winners of the groups advance to knock-out rounds.The only difference is who runs the tourna ments and how they are organized.” Currently, eSports doesn’t have an overall governing body; to this point,

the NCAA will not have any involve ment. Large, national tournaments are hosted by the game developers and for any smaller tournaments or matches (between MEC teams, for instance), the rights to use the games must be purchased or negotiated. “In standard sports, there are no patents to contend with,” Nowaczyk explains. “For instance, anyone can host a basketball tournament without pay ing for the rights to the game; that ’s where eSports is a bit different.” The Kettering University eSports team has hit the level of contender and hopes for a good finish to the year. “I would like to see Top 3 finishes this year,” says Nowalczyk. “Our teams are developing. We had a Top 3 place ment in Rainbow Six and are hoping for our League of Legends team to qualify for the playoffs. Our program is beginning to hit its stride.” t

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