The Northwest College esports program is moving closer to a reality with a new facility. Brian Erickson, athletic director for Northwest College, gave a presentation on the facility during an update on the status of the competitive video gaming program at this month’s board of trustees meeting.

“Gaming is bigger than any of us even know,” Erickson said. 

At a time the college is facing budgetary struggles from declining state support and enrollment, the esports program, Erickson said, offers a low-cost option for a student activity. 

Unless players go to a national tournament, there’s typically no travel costs. The internet is being provided by TCT — a roughly $2,500 per year donation — and the NWC Foundation provided $17,000 for the program’s startup costs. 

The computers and other hardware are set up, and the room is awaiting some more furniture and decorations. The liquid-cooled systems have Intel i7 processors, 16 gigabytes of RAM, and Geforce RTX 3060 video cards. They’re decent systems to handle today’s online gaming, and they were all set up by Casey Dearcorn, NWC’s computer services director.

Erickson first proposed the esports program in late 2019, but the pandemic delayed the initiative until this semester. While the proposal was met with mixed reviews in the community, the board of trustees was open to the idea. At this month’s meeting, the trustees continued to show support for the program. 

“Why aren’t we going here? It’s real,” said Mark Wurzel, president of the NWC Board of Trustees.

In terms of revenue, video gaming is overtaking sports, with the gaming industry taking in $146 billion in 2019.

Erickson also discussed how the program fits with the athletic program. Though it doesn’t contain the physical activity of traditional sports, it does provide life skills training, values of teamwork and strategic thinking, Erickson said. He also pointed out that it provides a social activity. 

“Most of these kids game in their room, and this is an opportunity for them to be part of a group. We can get them out of their rooms,” Erickson said. 

It could be August before the program is fully up and running, he said, so it will be the fall semester before NWC competes in National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) esports league. However, Erickson is planning some activities for the students currently enrolled this semester. 

The games will depend on student interest and the NJCAA offerings, but among the titles under consideration are Call of Duty, League of Legends, Fortnite and Rocket League.  

Erickson said he’s looking to get about 40 student esports athletes into the program in the fall — and there is some possibility the college will be able to offer scholarships for the program.