In an ever-changing world, technology is constantly evolving how the world operates. Even sports has gone through changes with technology but now a new sport has arisen from this technology. ESports has seen an exponential amount of growth at all levels of competition but now the possibility of it growing into an NSAA sanctioned sport has grown more likely. Despite this, when Omaha Public Schools proposed a bill to make ESports an NSAA sport, the bill did not receive enough support to advance.
“Omaha Public Schools began offering eSports at each of our high schools in 2022,” OPS Athletics Director and proposer of the bill Dr. John Krongstrand said. “As eSports continues to grow in popularity, NSAA recognition of eSports would allow Nebraska to remain competitive with school districts across the nation. The official recognition would also allow participants to qualify for scholarships and award programs offered by the NSAA. NSAA membership would also establish consistent rules and guidelines for all participating schools.”
‘I like the idea because I feel like it will give a good group of kids who aren’t involved in other things a chance [to be a part of something],” Activities Director Steve Throne said. “[Also], if they are, they can make it work with the other groups of things because there is flexibility with when you can play. It will be exciting to see where it goes and I think it will happen eventually once they agree on when they will play and the platform that will be used.”
“Esports is unique in that anyone can do it from anywhere,” collegiate ESports player and MSHS graduate Noah Snook said. “Unlike other sports, Esports gives competitors the freedom to not just be able to compete from any location with WIFI, but also to compete with anybody. A cool aspect of esports is that there aren’t divisions seperating genders or age groups. Competition and division is based solely on skill level. I think because of the massive growth in Esports since Covid it would be a great idea for any school to invest in it.”
ESports in high schools is not necessarily a brand new idea as 77 schools have already established ESports teams as they compete in the league known as the Nebraska Schools ESports Association. The teams in the league compete across three seasons as there is a league available for the Fall, Winter and Spring. The games played rotate each season as it leads to a state championship tournament that takes place at the end of each of the three seasons. While students enjoy this freedom, it has also led to some complications when deciding on the future of ESports.
“There’s multiple platforms that schools use to play the games and there are some schools that don’t want to play on a specific platform for a game,” Throne said. “The other part is that E-Sports could potentially lose some of the flexibility that they currently have. They can play in all seasons and under NSAA they would not have that same flexibility.”
There are currently at least 170 colleges and universities that compete in eSports across the United States including several in Nebraska. However, this does not mean that there have not been problems with deciding how ESports will come into schools.
“There are also some issues that go with it, mostly network security so we would have to figure out how to make sure the network is secure,” Throne said.
“Many high schools around the nation already have their own esports teams that compete in state,” Snook said. “Although it would take some funding for computers or consoles, streaming / broadcasting Esports is so much easier compared to other sports which would allow for a better viewership and overall promotion of the school.”
These complaints have not stopped the proponents of ESports becoming an NSAA sport as they cite the benefits of ESports for the students who participate.
“Omaha Central currently has 70 students doing it and they are loving it and some are getting scholarships [for ESports] so there are some benefits to it,” Throne said.
“Scholarships are getting insane in esports,” Snook said. “Many universities are offering full rides for it! I was able to get 30k per year for my esports scholarship back when the market was smaller. I can only assume that number has gone up since then. Another benefit is the friends you can make through it. It is a big field so there are a ton of people that you will meet with similar interests to you.”
The ultimate question for many students is whether or not ESports in Millard Public Schools is in the near future.
“I think it will be a couple more years [before MPS adds it] because people don’t want to give up the freedom to play in the fall or in the spring so I don’t think it will happen [for MPS] for a while,” Throne said.
“ESports is among the fastest-growing activities/athletics programs at the high school and collegiate levels,” Krogstrand said. “With student interest high, alongside the potential benefits noted above, adding eSports to the NSAA roster could positively impact students in high school and beyond.”
“Esports is growing every day,” Snook said. “There are so many different games that fall under the same esports category that can be played at the high school level. The audience for esports in general is [about] 530 million people.
The debates are likely to continue for the foreseeable future as the state decides what ESports will look like for Nebraska high school students.
