Beyond playing games ELI FEAZELL ASST. SPORTS EDITOR Not everyone is interested in esports just for the games. Some might be interested in competitive gaming, but others might find an open space for career development regardless of their major. Esports is multiplayer video games played at the competitive level, and it’s growing in popularity all over the world. When Bobcat Esports was formed as a club in 2017, its founders weren’t just focused on recruiting the best players they could find. The program needed students who work in management, social media, technical support, broadcasting and other fields to get the program fully running. That’s one thing those involved with Bobcat Esports wants everyone to know: Even if a student is not competitive or even if they don’t have a strong aptitude for gaming, the club is still open to them. One of the founders of Bobcat Esports, Kristofer Meyeres, a 2020 alumnus and continued esports advisor at OU, said that often his long-time passion for video games was not understood by people around him. Many didn’t see the same potential value in the medium as he did, and the stigma around video games didn’t help, either. “There’s always a stereotype that video gamers were just an outcast of society and that you can’t interact with them,” Meyeres said. “I really wanted to focus on breaking that stigma and then also showcasing how much really is behind esports and video games.” Meyeres believes Bobcat Esports began to grow a social presence at Ohio University after the club formed and hosted events. People who played games were no longer being viewed as outcasts playing in the corner of lobbies, Meyeres said. Along with the industry becoming more popular inside and outside of Athens, people recognized the leadership of students involved with Bobcat Esports, its partnerships with OU and the growing membership of the club. Even professors and faculty began to notice and recog12 / NOV. 18, 2021
Bobcat Esports held its admin meeting consisting of presidents from other gaming clubs on campus in the CoLab on the third floor of Alden Library. (RYAN GRZYBOWSKI | FOR THE POST)
nized Meyeres as a part of the organization when he was in the classroom. Bobcat Esports became an integral part of student life for many members of the club. With its arms outstretched and welcoming, people continued to join during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kylie Jung, a graduate student in the industrial systems engineering program, was part of Shawnee State University’s esports program. After her time at SSU, she wanted a graduate school that could offer her a similar gaming environment. She asked her coach if OU had anything to offer, and she got in contact with Bobcat Esports before her first semester even started. Right after Jung signed her lease, OU announced that most courses would be online for the following semester. Jung’s start in Athens could have been lonely but, fortunately, she already had connections. “The only way that I actually got to know people at OU was through Bobcat Esports,” Jung said. “I’m friends with them today, and we hang out and everything, and it’s fantastic. But if I didn’t have Bobcat Esports for that, I don’t really know where I’d be because everything was online.” Jung appreciates the competitive cul-
ture on the Bobcat Esports equivalent of a varsity Overwatch team she is on. However, not everyone has to love competition to be a part of Bobcat Esports. Katie Schmidt, a senior in the music production program, felt welcomed by the club as a freshman in 2018. He had never seriously considered playing video games competitively until he played a few rounds of Super Smash Bros. Melee and talked with club members at the student involvement fair. “I didn’t really play any super competitive matches,” Schmidt said. “I just played more casually and stuff, but the community is really welcoming in that if you are just a casual player, you aren’t going to be excluded from the space.” From there, Schmidt started on the club’s Overwatch team, became social media manager, then program director and now sits as vice president. He wants others who might be unsure if they will feel accepted in Bobcat Esports to know there’s a space open for them. “As a member of the LGBT community ... in the role of vice president, a lot of what I do is just help other people feel included,” Schmidt said. “If somebody isn’t sure about joining a team or isn’t sure about
where they can fit in, I can talk to them if they want to talk. We have a lot of different people, non-binary, identify as (a) man, identify as a woman, a lot of people from different backgrounds, gender, sexuality, race, all sorts of settings that just come and play games.” Schmidt also credits Bobcat Esports in helping him learn how to compose himself on a professional level. He attends board meetings, works with investors and helps with the creation of the upcoming new esports facility. Bobcat Esports is made up of students from a variety of majors, with many finding ways to implement their studies into the club. Pat Daley, a junior studying integrated media and the current president of Bobcat Esports, has a dream job of working in player support and helping set organizations up for success by making them aware of their best and worst practices. He saw potential in the program when he arrived at OU and set a goal in obtaining a leadership position. Those who came before Daley, like Meyeres and Ivy O’Shaughnessy, another founder, gave him the opportunity to climb up the ladder to higher positions. By the time he was president, he was
