SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The University of Utah is holding tryouts to select 35 students who will receive partial scholarships for the school’s new video game team that will become the first varsity team at a major athletics conference.
A.J. Dimick, director of operations for the team, says students chosen when tryouts end later this month will receive $500 a semester and compete in four games: Overwatch, Hearthstone, League of Legends and Rocket League.
Dimick says they’ll compete in similar competitions that the club-level team played in in the past. The Pac-12 Conference said last year it would start league-wide competitions through its TV network, but that plan was scrapped this year.
Dimick says Utah wants to drive the sport’s growth at the collegiate level and offer a template for other large colleges to start teams.
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