Yifan Wu
Special Contributor to CSNChicago.com
In a season-opener against an unranked and little-known opponent, a college powerhouse fell behind by one point for less than two minutes. However, the head coach, who just came off a brief stint in the pros, buried his face in his hands and sighed in disbelief before rifling through the team analyst's notepads.
No, it was not Alabama football but rather Robert Morris' varsity team playing "League of Legends," a free-to-play computer game, against Missouri Baptist. Like the Crimson Tide, who list six analysts on its staff directory, RMU e-sports leads the collegiate scene in support staff, starting with Mykolas "MykieMause" Saulis, a full-time analyst.
Up to six hours a day, five days a week, Saulis hovers behind the varsity team's gaming chairs during practice, taking notes and making observations. Sometimes, the computer network major joins the post-game huddle to discuss his findings. Often, Saulis finds a working station at the arena's corner and records his notes into a Google Docs spreadsheet.
"As of right now, the notes are very broad," Saulis said. "The spreadsheet has specific points we want to see the team work on, like specific timing to be aggressive. We try to get some sort of quantified result, and then you can track their progress."
When Drake Porter came to RMU as the head coach last October, he suggested the addition of a student-analyst, citing his experience working at Frank Gang Gaming, a professional team.
"Most of the pro teams have someone breaking down gameplays for them, and now the college scene is catching up," Porter said. "They can put it in numbers and let us know how the opponents play under different circumstances."
Read the full story at Medill Reports Chicago.
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