The collegiate influence
Riot·12/3/2014, 1:07:27 AM·0 votes·6,461 views
A college freshman sits in their dorm room debating whether to open up their backpack and start studying for the night, or try and grind to Challenger before the ranked cutoff date. Three or four years ago, this would have been an easy choice for risk adverse college students: focusing on school was undoubtedly better for their financial future.
Today, however, college players don't have to make that choice. Powerhouse schools like University of British Columbia and Robert Morris University now hold a promising place for those trying to get into amateur or professional League, as well as a place for ex-LCS players/students to continue playing the game they love.
Further to the northwest, Apollo “Wizfujiin” Price was picked up from the University of Washington squad UW Purple Caster Minions to play AD Carry for Team Coast. Following along in KiWiKiD’s footsteps, Wizfujiin showed that players new to the big stage may need some time to adjust when moving from the small scale college games to the live LCS stage.
Wizfujiin struggled in his debut and took a beating from Evil Geniuses, but once he settled into the saddle he wasn’t afraid to go toe to toe with the likes of Doublelift and Wildturtle. His earlier problems never resurfaced, even during the 2014 Spring Promotion Tournament, one of the highest pressure moments of his career.
“I knew that I had a lot to learn, but because I had plenty of practice doing 5's, I had a decent understanding of the game and knowing how to communicate. Playing on a collegiate team, or really any team in general just helps with communication and knowing how to play with 4 other players,” Wizfujiin said.
Adrian “Popstar Adrian” Ma, the new support player on LMQ’s roster, recently left his scholarship at Robert Morris University for a chance to prove himself in the LCS. On the RMU team, Popstar Adrian contributed to their current 6-0 season in the Collegiate Starleague, and is one of the top 20 players on the NA ranked ladder. But through RMU’s program, he’s found that there’s more to being the best than a KDA.
“I had a little of an ego at first but as time went by I became more reserved and humble. I learned that you have to approach things with an open mind, be understanding of others, and respect their point of view. For in game stuff, most of us were solo queue players and the coaching staff helped us break bad habits and make good ones,” Popstar Adrian said.
Now that he’s in the LCS, he’ll have to take all those lessons with him to the big stage.
When compLexity was relegated after the Season 3 Spring Split, Patrick “MegaZero” Glinsman chose to bide his time and finish his education at Carnegie Mellon University.
His journey has been a testament to the difficulties pro players face when others rise up above them. Without the steady opportunity to play on a big stage, a player’s ability to work and mesh with a constant team could deteriorate. With a healthy collegiate scene to play in, MegaZero can continue to hone his communication and teamwork and keep the option to go pro a legitimate possibility in the future.
“I don’t plan on going competitive again, at least not until after college. But I'm on the collegiate team because it's something I'm good at and I like doing,” MegaZero said.
Sometimes players have a high solo queue rank to their name, maybe even a couple accounts in Challenger. While that’s attractive to team who needs to fill a spot, that doesn’t guarantee the player works well in a team setting. Players that have never been on a competitive team need to learn -- perhaps obviously -- teamwork. What the growing collegiate scene offers is a place for rising stars to do just that; rise, but in the right light. It not only allows them to show off the fact that they may have Doublelift-esque mechanics, but that they can effortlessly insert themselves into an LCS team with minimal conflict.
The big question is, how much further will the collegiate scene grow and strengthen? Will more schools recognize the potential behind eSports programs or will RMU be the lone pioneer among colleges? Only time will tell, but for now, Popstar Adrian is the forerunner of what may become a powerful new wave of NA talent.
The scouted
One of the earliest pulls from the collegiate scene was Alan “KiWiKiD” Nguyen. AP Carry for the UT Austin team Panggirls, he became the Team Dignitas top laner back in 2012. His time in the top lane was short lived and he became infamous for holding the record for most deaths in a split. Many thought that perhaps Scarra’s decision to scout him out of school may have been premature for the young player. “It was a big change regarding my whole lifestyle, especially taking a break from school. My parents were completely unsupportive at the time, so that was pretty hard to deal with,” KiWiKiD said. When KiWiKiD was moved from top to support, his confidence seemed to skyrocket -- along with his level of play. The shift from college to LCS was tough at first, but the skills he learned playing for UT Austin were forged and focused to the point where the bowl cut could compete at the pro level.
Further to the northwest, Apollo “Wizfujiin” Price was picked up from the University of Washington squad UW Purple Caster Minions to play AD Carry for Team Coast. Following along in KiWiKiD’s footsteps, Wizfujiin showed that players new to the big stage may need some time to adjust when moving from the small scale college games to the live LCS stage.
Wizfujiin struggled in his debut and took a beating from Evil Geniuses, but once he settled into the saddle he wasn’t afraid to go toe to toe with the likes of Doublelift and Wildturtle. His earlier problems never resurfaced, even during the 2014 Spring Promotion Tournament, one of the highest pressure moments of his career.
“I knew that I had a lot to learn, but because I had plenty of practice doing 5's, I had a decent understanding of the game and knowing how to communicate. Playing on a collegiate team, or really any team in general just helps with communication and knowing how to play with 4 other players,” Wizfujiin said.
Adrian “Popstar Adrian” Ma, the new support player on LMQ’s roster, recently left his scholarship at Robert Morris University for a chance to prove himself in the LCS. On the RMU team, Popstar Adrian contributed to their current 6-0 season in the Collegiate Starleague, and is one of the top 20 players on the NA ranked ladder. But through RMU’s program, he’s found that there’s more to being the best than a KDA.
“I had a little of an ego at first but as time went by I became more reserved and humble. I learned that you have to approach things with an open mind, be understanding of others, and respect their point of view. For in game stuff, most of us were solo queue players and the coaching staff helped us break bad habits and make good ones,” Popstar Adrian said.
Now that he’s in the LCS, he’ll have to take all those lessons with him to the big stage.
More than a backup plan
Players like KiWiKiD and Wizfujiin may have proven that the conduit between collegiate and pro League can thrive. However, should they find themselves on the unfortunate side of a relegation series, their options a year or two ago were limited. They could either to go back into Challenger (which was a huge setback to a career), or just go back to the “normal” life of school or a job. This year, thanks to the rise of collegiate League, not only can they continue to do what they love while finishing their education, they can hold out until the next split or potentially come back into the scene if a spot opens. The most experienced eSports schools like University of British Columbia lay claim to alum Alberto “Crumbz” Rengifo of Team Dignitas, and a couple Challenger players on teams like Proof of Payment on Team Tempest and Npromsiri on New World Eclipse. The innovative school Robert Morris University recognizes League of Legends as a varsity sport, and their players receive roughly $19,000 in scholarships, and access to sponsor funded equipment.
When compLexity was relegated after the Season 3 Spring Split, Patrick “MegaZero” Glinsman chose to bide his time and finish his education at Carnegie Mellon University.
His journey has been a testament to the difficulties pro players face when others rise up above them. Without the steady opportunity to play on a big stage, a player’s ability to work and mesh with a constant team could deteriorate. With a healthy collegiate scene to play in, MegaZero can continue to hone his communication and teamwork and keep the option to go pro a legitimate possibility in the future.
“I don’t plan on going competitive again, at least not until after college. But I'm on the collegiate team because it's something I'm good at and I like doing,” MegaZero said.
Sometimes players have a high solo queue rank to their name, maybe even a couple accounts in Challenger. While that’s attractive to team who needs to fill a spot, that doesn’t guarantee the player works well in a team setting. Players that have never been on a competitive team need to learn -- perhaps obviously -- teamwork. What the growing collegiate scene offers is a place for rising stars to do just that; rise, but in the right light. It not only allows them to show off the fact that they may have Doublelift-esque mechanics, but that they can effortlessly insert themselves into an LCS team with minimal conflict.
The big question is, how much further will the collegiate scene grow and strengthen? Will more schools recognize the potential behind eSports programs or will RMU be the lone pioneer among colleges? Only time will tell, but for now, Popstar Adrian is the forerunner of what may become a powerful new wave of NA talent.
