via @LevelNextGG on Twitter
Texas Tech eSports continues to cultivate its reputation as an elite eSports program as the Rocket League team took home 6th in a LevelNext collegiate tournament. According to the LevelNext website, Texas Tech fell to LSU in the semifinals but took home $4,200 in prize money for the 6th place finish.
The LevelNext tournament hosted 24 teams, with a total of $125,000 in prize money awarded. Texas Tech had a bye in the first round, according to the LevelNext bracket. The team then defeated UT Dallas and Northwood, who would go on to finish in 2nd place.
Carson Logas, a member of the Texas Tech Rocket League team, said the Red Raiders have played against UT Dallas in the past, and they are always battling for the top spot in Texas.
“We’re always fighting for the number one Texas team,” Logas said.
Logas said the team brings three starters and one alternate for competitions. The team in the LevelNext tournament consisted of Carson “Cmoney” Logas, Kevin “Flash” Campbell, Grant “SpaceKitten” Kitten, and Connor “Con” Lowe.
via Texas Tech Today
He said his goal for the future is to continue climbing in the collegiate Rocket League rankings and eventually take the No. 1 spot.
“I think out biggest goal right now is to try and win the West,” Logas said. “Not only beat the Texas teams, but all the teams that are on our side.”
As of now, the eSports organization is just a club on campus. Emmanuel Hayworth, the president of the eSports organization, said the group could benefit from becoming a sports program instead.
“We feel that we are behind most colleges in the state of Texas in terms of eSports,” Hayworth said. “A lot of them already have established programs and we’re still a club. So that’s a goal for the next calendar year is to be an official program on campus.”
Hayworth said he has had conversations about how to make this goal a reality. He said he and other board members are creating a plan for the future expansion of the program.
Hayworth also emphasized how the group has grown since its founding in 2016. With the rise of eSports has been huge in the past few years, he said he seeks to push the growth of the game even further in Lubbock. According to Hayworth, the total member count is 382.
Since the organization started in 2016, Hayworth said it has seen a significant amount of growth. When asked about how he plans to continue growing the organization, Hayworth talked about producing more content.
“Working on our content creations, and really starting to push our teams, and the content within our teams out,” Hayworth said. “That way we can get more engaged with the community.”
via @LevelNextGG on Twitter
The team streams on Twitch, and players have their own streams according to Hayworth. He said he believes this will help content creation, and eventually expand the reach of the program. Hayworth said the most popular games in the organization include Rocket League, Rainbow Six Siege, Counter Strike, and League of Legends.
Hayworth said if anyone has interest in joining the program, they can look to join through TechConnect, or through the TTU eSports discord.
“That’s one big thing we are also trying to do this year is make ourselves more accessible,” Hayworth said, “get our names out there more.”
Be sure to follow the eSports team on Twitter – @ttuesports
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