PELL CITY — Pell City High School is gearing up to start a new form of athletic competition: Esports.
During its regular meeting this week the Pell City Board of Education voted to approve naming Pell City High School teachers Shae Reynolds and David Crunkilton as coaches for the school’s newest team.
Esports is a catch all term for competitions that use video games, normally in the form of organized team based matches or tournaments. The idea behind Esports has existed for several years on a professional level.
Teams compete for large prize pools in events such as the League of Legend World Championships, using Riot Games popular game “League of Legends.” There are also entire sports leagues such as Overwatch League, which features several professional teams competing through Blizzard Entertainment’s popular first person shooter “Overwatch” in a way not very different from the NFL or NBA.
The concept recently has taken hold at both the college and high school levels. The University of Montevallo began a fully sanctioned Esports team in 2020, one of the first in the state. The Alabama High School Athletic Association also sanctions fall and spring Esports seasons with the option to play several different games that change depending on the season, which is how Pell City Plans to compete.
Pell City Superintendent Dr. James Martin says he sees the new program as an opportunity not only to get students more scholarship opportunities but also get more students involved.
“We want to provide our students with as many opportunities as we can,” he said, “and put them in a position where they can be successful.”
High School Principal Richard Garris echoed Martin and highlighted the fact that these are team events that allow students to work on teamwork, leadership and discipline in much the same way a more traditional sport would. He said an Esports team may also reach students that would not be interested in those more traditional opportunities.
“There are some avenues to explore there with some students that may not have necessarily had those opportunities,” Garris said.
Reynolds and Crunkilton both said they’re interested in coaching the team because they both play games as a hobby.
“It’s something that’s a great way to connect with kids and something we both personally enjoy doing outside of work,” Reynolds said.
She said the connecting with students part is already looking promising, with more than 100 students expressing interest in the team. Reynolds said that level of interest is good, since the AHSAA has seven games students can participate in. Each game will have main teams and also alternate teams both so students can practice against one another and so the teams can switch out.
Crunkilton said that the games change every season and after the spring games are announced the two plan to hold tryouts in January. He said one of the things they are looking for is a willingness to be part of a team.
“We are going to have tryouts to see not only who is a great player but are they a great team player,” Crunkilton said. “Sometimes you can be the best but if you don’t have team chemistry you are going to lose 95 percent of the time.”
He said a big part of the program is teaching that kind of teamwork and sportsmanship to students who may otherwise not have an outlet.
Reynolds said it’s also likely going to help a lot of students academically by giving them a reason to do better in school. She said participating in the team comes with the same GPA and attendance requirements as any other AHSAA sanction sport
Reynolds said providing this kind of structure and discipline is important. She said on a basic level even having that opportunity already seems to mean a lot to students.
“We had a kid that said to the librarian that he finally feels like there’s something he can be involved in in the school.” Reynolds said. “It’s a whole different demographic of children we are reaching, because you don’t have to be a fast runner or really tough. These are kids who are more introverted who can get involved and have a place where they feel they belong.”
Taylor Mitchell is a Daily Home reporter covering Pell City.
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