UAF esports joins national league, awards scholarships

The University of Alaska Fairbanks has joined the National Association of Collegiate Esports.

UAF is the first university in Alaska to achieve NACE membership and one of only a handful in the western United States. NACE formed in 2016 and has more than 170 members. This year, for the first time, UAF allocated $20,000 to scholarships for esports team members.

“Joining NACE and introducing scholarships to our teams is the first step in reaching a higher level of competition in this growing competitive field,” said UAF esports coordinator Drake Richards. “We are breaking new ground, as a college in Alaska, and making sure we stay ahead of the curve.”

UAF hosted tryouts this fall to field one team each for the games Beat Saber, Rocket League and League of Legends, and two teams for Valorant. More than 30 esports players are members of UAF’s league teams. Tryouts for the spring Apex Legends season will happen early next year.

The teams practice once a week or more, Richards said. They compete in at least one match weekly. Matches are streamed live on the UAF esports Twitch channel, and recordings are available on the UAF esports YouTube channel. Team captains, along with Richards and student employees, provide support, structure and guidance for the teams.

Investing in esports is part of UAF’s strategy to build a more modern college experience for students, said Owen Guthrie, UAF vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management.

“Having a robust esports program is something that today’s students expect from higher education institutions,” he said. “Just like with more traditional athletics programs, students learn all kinds of valuable skills in their extracurricular activities. Teams that are able to compete and win at the highest levels must communicate effectively, work together cohesively, and refine their social and emotional skills, as well as master difficult intellectual and strategic challenges.” 

Now that UAF has joined NACE, Richards hopes to grow the program, with an eye on putting UAF teams in the developer leagues. These elite leagues, analogous to Division I in traditional sports, are run by the companies that develop games. 

Scholarships will help make that happen, he said, because they will allow UAF to recruit and retain highly skilled players. Many of those players have and will come from communities in Alaska.

“I am especially excited about the opportunities this brings to Alaska high school students,” he said, noting that a student doesn’t have to come from a big school to become a top esports player. “Anyone can play with anyone; it’s a totally even playing field. This could be really big for the state.”

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Drake Richards, dwrichards2@alaska.edu, 907-474-6040. Jeff Richardson, 907-474-6284, jarichardson6@alaska.edu. 

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