Bradley University's nascent esports program is growing by leaps and bounds during the COVID-19 pandemic, as students look for new ways to connect while remaining socially distant.
Griffin Kemp is a member of the student Esports Committee at Bradley.
"We're actually having our best semester yet," said Kemp, noting there are nearly 400 students participating in Esports this fall.
That includes students who would usually participate in traditional contact sports. The university's hockey team has formed a Rocket League team during the pandemic. Another Esports team is led by two students ordinarily involved in club baseball.
But it's not all fun and games. Kemp said many players are still hurting from the loss of gaming together.
"It's a little detrimental in a sense that we are missing that kind of in-person interaction that a lot of our students and players really kind of cherish," he said.
Over the next couple of years, Kemp said he hopes the Esports program gains official recognition from Bradley University.
"I not only really see it as a way to provide more accessible competition for our players, more established community for all graduate students who have a kin for Esports and gaming, but as well as even the career development side," said Kemp. "In a sense that really working with our academic departments and colleges at Bradley to really explore this new industry is really booming, and to provide students that support. So that's what I see the program hopefully being."
It's a step other central Illinois higher education institutions like Illinois State University and Illinois Wesleyan University already have taken.
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