Baptist University Offering Scholarships to Play Video Games

[Jerome]

Anchorage gamer receives 'esports' scholarship to play video game in college

This fall, Anchorage Christian senior Jonathan Steigleman will...attend college on a scholarship for competitive gaming...at Southwest Baptist University in Missouri.

"Every night when I'm going to sleep I get excited (thinking about it)," Steigleman said. "I'm going to college to play a video game and do what I love. "It's going to be amazing."

"League of Legends"...is a game that pits two teams of five players against each other in an online battle arena, where the goal is to destroy the other team's base. Each player controls his or her own fantasy-type character, called a champion, with its own set of attacks, abilities and roles. Steigleman will play the role of "jungler," which is a position that assists the other four players on the team, sort of like a point guard in basketball or a libero in volleyball.

Part of Southwest Baptist's esports training routine includes physical activity three days a week.

 

[Squire Robertsson]

So, he gets a scholarship for gaming instead of basketball or football.

 

[TCassidy]

So, he gets a scholarship for gaming instead of basketball or football.

And he will probably have a better career writing code than playing ball.

 

[just-want-peace]

FWIW, I remember seeing some show on tv about training modern fighter pilots. And the instructor (military) commented that kids that grew up playing video games had a lot less trouble acclimating themselves to the intricate controls of weapons & piloting than others; mainly because the basic difference was that one was a game, but the other was reality. The skills developed and needed for the fighter were honed by the games prior to actual flight instruction.

 

[Reynolds]

Anchorage gamer receives 'esports' scholarship to play video game in college

That's weird. With Title 9, usually the odd scholarships go to women.