Jacksonville, AL – Once All-Calhoun County offensive linemen and Jax’s Limberis, Smith find their college possibilities … Limberis with Point golf and Smith with Huntingdon ESports
by Joe Medley
Hayden Smith and Zach Limberis were teammates for a long time as offensive linemen of All-Calhoun County to Jacksonville, Limberis at center and Smith at guard. Their bond naturally brought competition to their favourite sports and Smith’s attempt to play with Limberis did not go as planned. “It was not my best day,” Smith said. “I was a triple bogey and quadruple bogey. I was out to have fun.” Smith got his revenge by playing video games. The common thread was that they competed in a game, and both are set to play in the college level.
Smith joined the team on Wednesday. Huntington College’s newly-formed ESports program. Limberis will be taking his golf game towards Point University. They officially announced the move at the ceremony on Wednesday in Jacksonville high school’s library. They made sure that running back Jae-Taj Morris, and the player Jim Ogle clean. Then, Limberis and Smith play on screens and greens. “It’s amazing,” Limberis said. “It’s extremely unique, and very emotional. “We played together throughout high school, and so pushing our competitiveness up to the next step is something to us.”
Limberis”soon” to be a successful player came after a bit of encouragement. “My team coach from Anniston Country Club talked to me and said, ‘You’ve got an opportunity to move it to the next step that’s what I said,'” Limberis said. “It was as if he said, ‘The ball’s on your court, therefore you’ll need to put the effort into it and get this.'” Limberis made the video of his swing and emailed the video directly to Point the golf instructor Maddux Lytle, who responded and requested an appointment, which eventually resulted in an offer. “I’m extremely thrilled about Zach,” said Lytle who was at the signing ceremony on Wednesday. “He is a great athlete with a tremendous desire to improve his game and that’s what we are looking for. “We’ve an impressive facilities for an NAIA college, and I’m looking forward to watching his growth and develop and be a part of the team for us.”
Smith will be part of a team that is scheduled to begin its first season of competitive play in the autumn. Huntingdon has hired ESports Director Justin Ellis in June, following Ellis established an esports team within Quinnipiac University. Huntingdon is an NCAA Division III school, and Division III sports do not offer scholarships. The NCAA does not offer ESports however it does offer scholarships, and Huntingdon scholarships usually provide 35 percent of the all costs of attending, Ellis said. Smith stated that he’ll be receiving an annual salary of $14,000. “It’s going to pay for everything except for my house and my room,” he said. ESports doesn’t have NCAA divisions. “D-II D-IIIs, D-IIs as well as NAIA schools are more likely to be winners than schools that are D-I right now,” Ellis said. “You could be playing UCLA in one week and then play an institution of higher learning within Kansas the next week or an institution located in Canada. “The D-I schools do not actively seek out players for ESports. They have so many players that, most times they’ll simply go to anyone who signs up at their institution and say, “Oh If you’re not involved in something, then come to play ESports.’ Huntingdon and other schools that you can see at a lower level are actively seeking players.” While stick-and-ball sport coaches seek out the measurables, ESports “measurables” come more intangibles. [read more…]
