BOISE, IDAHO — Summarize who, what, when, where.
- CORRECTION: BSU Esports actually has 19 total conference titles. The broadcast story says they have eleven.
- What do Esports athletes do to prepare for competition?
- We explore the BSU Esports program's similarities and differences when it comes to other collegiate sports
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story.)
Recruiting Esports athletes is relatively similar to how other college athletes are recruited.
"We look for folks that are really good at school, and really good at the game because we need them for four years and we need them with a degree at the end," said BSU Esports Head Coach Doc Haskell.
But obviously, these players won't need to bench 350 pounds or have a 28-inch vertical to be in the top-tier of their sport. They're still part of a division-one sports program, but they train to battle on a virtual blue turf.
"The field is different, but we expect them to have good sleep patterns, to eat properly, to work out in whatever way they choose. We don't have team workouts or hit the team weight room cause that doesn't impact our competitive advantage, but their health does!" exclaimed Haskell.
No group lifting sessions, no mandatory fast-twitch training, and no running laps for a missed block. It's all about education in BSU's Esports arena.
"Learning about the importance of eating right and how that impacts not only my academics and ability to sleep, but my physical performance. Physical performance plays into how you compete because it is your reaction time, it is how alert you are. And on top of that, Esports also encouraged me to treat my body better outside of just diet. I started doing more yoga, I lift a little bit but I don't like to lift cause it's just not for me," said Shoutcaster and former BSU Esports Athlete Arti Rainn.
But of course, it's not just diet and exercise. Like a basketball player putting up free throws or a baseball player hitting the batting cage, Esports players also put in the time.
"I was here about 20 hours a week, if not more, playing one game and trying my best to improve at it. And that doesn't even account for the time that people play when they're at home. Like, I played every single day at home even if I was here for four hours," said BSU Esports Athlete Jenny Cummins.
And just like any other athlete in any other sport, you won't go anywhere without the proper mindset.
"I always am preaching about maintaining and staying happy. If you're not happy, you need to focus in, focus up on the game and realize that yes, it's just a game at the end of the day, but you need to know that you left everything on the virtual field. You did the best you can. The only way to do that is to stay positive," said Rainn.
Though it might be athletes from other sports you're likely to find putting up huge weights in the school gym, the four national championships, eleven conference titles, and ridiculous amount of individual and team awards will tell you that whatever Boise State is doing to train their athletes, it seems to be working.
"It's still something that we care a lot about and work really hard towards, so even though our training isn't quite the same, it is still strict, it is still rigorous, and it is still draining," said Cummins.
