Courtney Bynum sits at the eSports Gaming Association table at the Student Involvement fair on Jan 23. The group has more than 200 members.
The eSports Gaming Association at the University of Memphis started during the fall 2018 semester with 10 memebers. The group now includes more than 200 students.
Students play online competitive games like “League of Legends,†“Overwatch†and “Fortnite,†as well as others, against other groups at different schools.
“We compete with other colleges, and depending on whatever the teams want to do, they’ll compete on online tournaments or just get together and play,†said Ian Goforth, president of the association. “The two big games we play are ‘League of Legends’ and ‘Smash Brothers,’ but we support any game as long as the interest is there for the game.â€Â
The group has only participated in the “League of Legends†tournament, but Benjamin Phan, vice president of the eSports team, is planning more competitions.
“For now, since we just started, the only team that we have that is the competing ‘League of Legends’ team,†Phan said. “There is a upcoming ‘Call of Duty’ team, along with an ‘Overwatch’ team in the works right now.†Â
Goforth said the group likes participating in other activities besides competitive gaming, such as casual gaming, watching anime and playing tabletop games.
Phan and Goforth said, the organization will have bi-weekly meetings on Fridays from 5 to 8 p.m., but these may vary.
Those who are interested in joining the eSports Gaming Association can meet them Jan. 26 at the Cellar, a comic and video game store located in Bartlett. The committee will watch television and participate in a board game night.
Students who are interested in joining should also visit TigerZone, search eSports Gaming Association and sign up by providing their school email address and full name.
