BTN Invitational: Michigan State vs. Ohio State

University League of Legends is working with the Big Ten Network to broadcast the first ever BTN Invitational: A University League of Legends Event, live from PAX East on Friday, April 22!

The Invitational pits the Ohio State Buckeyes against the Michigan State Spartans for the latest installment in a growing esports rivalry. This will be the third time these teams have faced off this year, after going 1-1 in their uLoL Campus Series regular season matchup and eventually meeting in the playoffs, where Ohio State ended Michigan State’s title hopes. 

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Ohio State University is a collection of talent from all across the board - from their international student Terry “RemindMeRemi” Zhao to their ranked master Richard “Nexevis” Flagg.  This uLoL team is stacked with talent and that leads to them being one of the most dominant squads in North America. Though they were eliminated by the region favorites Robert Morris University in the Campus Series, they still had an impressive 11-3 run in one of the toughest regions in North America.

The team’s support, Donny “BaconSeeker” Campbell, says the team’s main strengths revolve around “excellent decision making and map movements.” They also sport a selfless team play style, which helps their champion picks and strategies evolve and adapt to beat any opponent.

“We believe that there is no reason at this time that we should lose to MSU” states their top laner Alex “Ahrun1” Williams boldly. There’s little reason to doubt it either - Ohio State University has proven time and time again they have what it takes to take on the toughest teams in the nation.

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After being eliminated by Ohio State University in the uLoL Campus Series playoffs, Michigan State has something to prove in the upcoming match. It’s not a question of if Michigan State can take out Ohio State, it’s a question of Michigan State knowing what went wrong in their last match, fixing it, and getting revenge on the Buckeyes.

It’s almost impossible for teams to predict the Spartans, as their strategies vary wildly from game to game. According to their uLoL club’s Vice President, Sean Irwin, each player possesses a “wide champion pool, strong shot calling and objective control, and a strong sense of teamwork.” However, for all of the Spartans strengths, they struggle early game and sometimes have breakdowns in communication.

To fix their early game woes, Michigan State will rely heavily on their uLoL club for assistance. Michigan State’s  club has a reputation of being one of the most supportive uLoL clubs in the nation. The club helps the team with recruitment, training, and is a built in cheering section at every match. They’re essentially the backbone of the team, and even houses three teams all of whom spar with each other constantly in order to improve.

Though Ohio State cost them their uLoL Campus Series chances, they now know exactly what they have to work on and solve before the rematch. Their strategies are airtight, and their players are primed and ready. Michigan State has everything necessary to take back the crown from Ohio State in The Invitational and send the Buckeyes running home.

Check out the highlights from the uLoL Campus Series match between these two teams above!

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The Big Ten Invitational will take place on Friday, April 22nd at 12:00 PM EDT. If you’re going to PAX East be sure to stop by the uLoL Booth in the PAX Arena to catch the games live! If you’re not able to be at PAX, be sure to check out the games live over on watch.lolesports.com or btn2go.com.  This is just one of the many things we have planned for PAX, so be sure to stand by for more details as we head into next week!