Imagine competing for your school’s sports team, not on a grassy field, but in the digital arenas of “Rocket League” and “League of Legends.” Including esports to schools was proposed by the Virginia High School League in 2019, right before the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, this prevented Jefferson from forming an esports team until this school year.
“This is the first year that a sponsor, which is me, has volunteered to lead the group,” physics teacher and esports team sponsor Gregory Dorsey said. “Esports as an eighth period club could have existed, but competing against other high schools in Virginia is new for Jefferson.”
Before Dorsey joined Jefferson, senior Brian Ho had wanted to start an esports team. Ho had started by emailing the Director of Student Services, but the idea never fully materialized. However, when Dorsey volunteered to sponsor the team, the administration were able to create a team.
“From there, they reached out to me, saying they’re going to get esports started this year, and I said [I was] interested,” Ho said.
Recruiting players was the first challenge. Although Ho had been playing “Rocket League” for many years, he realized not everyone had the same interests and experience.
“Starting the team was [hard] because we didn’t know anyone. I had to ask friends of friends and [use] advertisements,” Ho said. “Finding other people to play ‘Rocket League’ with is very [difficult], especially at Jefferson. I think most people are playing ‘Valorant’ or ‘Brawl Stars.’”
Senior Jason Park joined the esports team as a “League of Legends” player, and he has also been playing video games for a long time.
“I heard about esports and Dorsey recommended it. I was hesitant about signing up, but I just decided to do it,” Park said. “I used to play League [of Legends] a lot in middle school, but I haven’t played it in three years. [So], I just got back [into] it.”
Throughout the season, the teams play against at least one other school several times during the week. Unlike traditional sports, a lot of their “training” happens at home.
“Our kids play very regularly,” Dorsey said. “All I do is I keep track of their online [status] and make sure they are [keeping] up with it, and not letting several weeks go by.”
As the spring season approaches, the team is getting back into action after performing well in the fall season. The regular season serves as the first step into the esports league. From there, the team can advance to the playoffs and then to the state championships.
“I would really love to share with the Jefferson community that we are looking for ‘League of Legends’ and ‘Rocket League’ players,” Dorsey said. “Email [me] if you want to play those for Jefferson.”