League of Legends, Overwatch, Rocket League, Madden NFL... If you’re passionate about your game, you could be ready for college-level competition with Augustana esports.
Esports is the 29th varsity-level sport and the first all-gender varsity athletic team at Augustana College. Esports has been a club at Augustana since 2017.
Vikings esports competes against teams from colleges and universities throughout the U.S. and Canada during a regular season and title championships.
Want to be part of our team? Fill out the recruitment form and we will be in touch. Talent-based scholarships will be offered.
As an esports athlete, your training will include in-game drills, strategy sessions, physical training and nutrition, video review and more. Like other Augustana student-athletes, you will focus on striking a strategic balance of intellect, character and spirit, becoming the best gamer you can be.
Esports teams
Whatever your skill level, you can try for your spot on the varsity roster for Overwatch, League of Legends, Rocket League, Madden, NBA2K, FIFA, Valorant and Sim Racing.
The Augustana Esports Center
Located in the Brunner Theater Center next to the bookstore, the Viking Esports Center has 20 PC gaming stations, three next-generation gaming console stations, a broadcast studio, kitchenette, and team and small group meeting spaces.
The team uses MSI Aegis gaming PCs with a core i7 processor, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080, 32GB RAM, SSD 1TB, HHD 2TB and liquid cooling systems.
Monitors are the Optix MAG251RX, equipped with a 240Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time panel, which is the tournament standard. Monitors are 24.5”, full HD (1080p), 240Hz and have a 1 ms (gray-to-gray) response time.
Players have custom Spectrum gaming desks and ergonomic gaming chairs.
Esports scholarships
Scholarships up to $3,000 are available to esports student-athletes, based on evaluation by the directors of esports and financial aid. To be considered, please complete the recruitment questionnaire.
Renewal is based on committed participation in varsity esports and support of teammates; satisfactory progress toward a degree, in compliance with the college’s standards of satisfactory academic progress requirements; and at the discretion of the director of esports.
Director of Esports: Payton Tucker
Payton Tucker came to Augustana after serving in the same role at Lyon College in Batesville, Ark. During his time as Director of Esports with Lyon, he handled the entire operations for the program, as well as handled the recruiting efforts for various competitive game titles. He was brought on to lead the college's Esports program after serving as the Intern Esports Coach at Springdale High School.
Tucker earned his degree in Educational Studies in 2020 from the University of Arkansas and was awarded the Freshman Academic Scholarship. He was a member of the Arkansas Esports team as a player, captain, coach and manager. Additionally, he was a member of the Riot Scholastic Association of America in 2021, where he served as part of the CLOL Selection Committee.
Mission
Augustana Esports fosters a value-driven, student-centered community dedicated to enriching student life on campus while creating a holistic approach to gaming culture and esports competition.
Support Esports
Those who would like to support Esports, as well as other athletics teams at Augustana, are invited to join the Viking Club.
Follow us
- X/Twitter: @AugieEsports
- Instagram: @AugieEsports_IL
- Facebook: @AugustanaEsports
- Discord: Augustana College Esports