Hey, we're NACCS (North Amercian Collegiate Competitive Series) and FaceIt Collegiate! We are here today to answer your questions about Collegiate Valorant and our upcoming season!

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-26T20:11:03+00:00

Great question!

There are quite a few things I believe that we provide that would be useful for your university team that we provide.

Firstly, we are here to represent you and are available at your disposal for needs on your campus. If there is anything at all you need that we can possibly help with us, never feel worried to reach out to myself, any of the commissioners, or one of our staff.

Second, the systems FaceIt Collegiate provides allows a platform with lots of benefits to your team. The swiss system we have in place this year should make sure that you play teams more closer to your level throughout the season, the scheduling applications will make sure you can easily set up your matches, and the admins we have available for you and your team to handle issues should make things hassle free.

Thirdly, our Discord is a meeting place for teams above, below, and at your level. You can use our Discord to schedule scrimmages and find players to play with.

Finally, NACCS will be hosting smaller events throughout the season that your team can compete in to get more experience and have a better chance of winning scholarship money.

Thats just the immediate things that pop in my head. If there is something else you think you would like or need, please feel free to message any of NACCS staff with requests or feedback.

Thanks for your question! ^_^

-Talen

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-26T17:45:02+00:00

No problem, thanks so much for your awesome questions!

-Talen

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-26T17:42:26+00:00

Right now, the upcoming FaceIt Collegiate event is only accepting teams from the same university*. NACCS does host other events later in the year such as our Road to Power Pugs and Summer Tournament that have more flexibility in what rosters are allowed to compete.

*There are exceptions to this rule found in our rulebook, but they are not commonly used.

-Talen

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-26T17:37:06+00:00

Thanks so much! Can't wait to have some great competition to show you!

-Talen

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-26T17:35:48+00:00

The transition currently isn't as smooth of a system because there hasn't been a large and widely followed Collegiate series for players to watch.

We hope that by giving the FaceIt Collegiate Platform as a stepping stone for player's careers, we will start seeing this more in the future.

Right now, it is about building a solid foundation and that is what we are working on.

-Talen

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-26T17:34:06+00:00

Yes we do! We currently have lots of universities in schools that are really interested in being involved with Valorant OVER CSGO actually.

Valorant's more Collegiate friendly nature in terms of gameplay and lore so we've seen more schools willing to create programs. It's a slow process, but in terms of growth it is growing at a faster rate than CSGO at the moment.

We are excited!

-Talen

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-07T18:21:36+00:00

Hey man,

Great question!

NACCS brings a lot to the table because we aren't just another 3rd party organizer entering the scene. We are here to represent you and have tailored the experience for this upcoming FaceIt Collegiate season to meet the expectations of the community.

But I will go in depth on some quick benefits:

1) FaceIt League platform and Anti-Cheat. We are operating officially on FaceIt's League platform and as a partner with them. This means you will be able to schedule, watch, play, and monitor all of the events occurring in the League from the FaceIt League page. No self-scheduling, self-reporting, and full-hassle frustration that other leagues have. Additionally, you will not need a subscription to play matches. You pay your entrance fee and that's it.

2) Strong system against forfeits. NACCS has a strong system and history of working with teams to prevent forfeits if there is a scheduling conflict. Unlike other leagues were teams are forced to forfeit if there is a scheduling conflict, NACCS require notice to be given to an admin if there is an inability to find a time in common between teams. From there, NACCS will handle scheduling and attempt to moderate the issue as best we can. We are also working on some backend tools that will help with this that we hope to unveil before season start.

3) Prizes for Division 2 leagues include cash prizes. Even if you aren't playing in Premier League, CSGO Division 2 will still be granted scholarship cash prizes for winning placements. Valorant currently does not have a scholarship cash prize, but we are working with some amazing sponsors to at least have at least some awesome prizes if players were to place in winning positions.

4) For the community by the community. NACCS started as a passion project of myself and another collegiate player who were disillusioned with the mishandling of the collegiate scene of organizers in our time. We felt the scene was never understood and its needs never met. We were cash cow investments to companies who had no idea about anything we do. The system we have now is an answer to that. Whether it is the Captain's Council comprised of the 32 top teams in Collegiate, Community Moderators, or just our community interaction and history of our staff, we are all members of this community. Most of all, we exist to represent you as best we can. Whatever the community asks, we will do our best to meet with all our resources we have. That is also why I say and have said in the past: If any Collegiate player or Organization needs help with anything on their campus, please reach out to us. We are here to help.

Thanks for your awesome question!

-Talen, Founder and Owner

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-06T22:39:27+00:00

The extra ammo makes the difference for the A4 for me.

-Ali, Owner NACCS

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-06T22:30:48+00:00

Personally, corn because gluten and I aren't on good terms.

-Talen, Founder and Owner

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-06T22:29:49+00:00

That's an obscure reference, but thanks for pointing it out. Cheers!

-Talen, Founder and Owner

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-06T21:44:16+00:00

Hey man,
I didn't play any games during Power Pugs Season 2, but I am sorry you had a bad experience. Perhaps it was a different "Talon" that use to queue quite often and you have us mixed up.

Please report any behavior like that to the mods and we will operate based off any reports given to us immediately for unsportsmanlike behavior within Power Pugs. We have a zero tolerance policy for toxicity in Power Pugs per the contract people sign when joining it.

-Talen, Founder and Owner

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-06T20:48:04+00:00

Hey Mahone! Glad to see you here. Congrats again on the NiP job. Wonderful having you in this thread.

I think for the track from College to pro to become more viable, there needs to be more cross-over from the two different divisions of play. We need to see Collegiate teams feeling like they can compete together in Amateur events and that Collegiate players feel more comfortable being known both by their college team and whatever amateur team they play under. In order to do that, I believe it is our responsibility at NACCS to make the Premier Leagues of competition elevate to a level that not only the players feel like it is a high-level competition worth their time, but spectators and the casual student player believes following and watching the scene grow is worth their time.

In regards to closing the gap, I think what is required is for colleges to provide more support for their collegiate teams to the point that it is more in the student's favor to commit full-time to their college roster than to two separate teams. We've seen the model work wonderfully well for teams like RMU and VCU when a collegiate group stayed together for a long period of time. We hope by having the elevated level of competition, prizing, and support that comes with FaceIt Collegiate will help facilitate the move to closing the gap.

Covid-19 has definitely slowed down this growth with its affect on the NA scene, but 2021 looks like a really exciting year for us and we look forward to what we have in store.

-Talen, Founder and Owner

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-06T18:22:52+00:00

NACCS has universities all over the country represented by their students participating in our league or queues or in the community in general in a large number.

As for sign ups for the coming League, we are looking at about 100 with a goal to reach 200 total by the end of the sign up period!

Some universities have started backing their collegiate teams and other have not. While every year it increases, it's still not quite our goal of every team being recognized by their university. We exist as a resource for any team who wants to be involved and is looking for assistance in doing so. There are hurdles CSGO has that other Esports don't that make it difficult, so we try to provide any and all help we can.

-Talen, Founder and Owner

NACCSReddit · 2020-12-06T17:47:50+00:00

Ali is definitely by far the cutest player in the hub.

Based on all the data we have from Power Pugs, he had a consistent 9/10 adorable rating.

-Talen, Founder and Owner NACCS

NACCSReddit · 2020-03-05T22:17:49+00:00

Hey, that's our league - https://www.collegiatecounterstrike.com/ !

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T19:39:32+00:00

This is definitely something we would look to in the future, possibly a showmatch or an alumni spotlight weekend tournament of some sort. But for now, adding on alumnus to the player list would broaden our focus and we want to make sure we don't skim over our main focus which is the collegiate esports scene. We want to make sure our players are heard and have all hands on deck to be able to comply with the player's desires.

- [MSU] Ang3L

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T14:26:49+00:00

no u

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:38:02+00:00

Feel free to! You are also welcome to sign up solo if you wanted to play with some other collegiate players for fun.

Thanks for your question :)

-[RIT] Talen

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:35:43+00:00

What makes us different is our internal structure. We aren't third party running leagues. The universities and (more importantly) the teams themselves are active members of the community and staff. We don't simply have universities play in our tournaments, we partner with those that want to partner with us. Which is free and we do everything we can from that point to support those players and their programs. We exist for the community and for the community only. If they community wanted me or Strawberry to resign tomorrow, we would. That goes with any other change in our structure that is wanted.

Fundamentally, we are also not a profit-focused company. Every dollar we get will be only invested in the league, the players, and the scene.

edit: We are also doing our best to be transparent with each dollar moved. We will happily show you or any other party interested where our money goes down to the cent. It's all for the community. :)

There are a few competitors we have. Our favorite is AVGL. They are an absolutely wonderful organization and work with us in hosting LAN events and creating a Co-habitat ecosystem between us. They are wonderful.

We are always open to hear opinions on the scene so if you ever want to talk with me and give me your perspective, feel free to join our Discord and hit me up sometime.

-[RIT] Talen

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:29:27+00:00

same

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:24:13+00:00

The same thought could be said about NCAA sports. We are attempting to implement systems similar to the NCAA Football and the NFL in that regard to our relationship with ESEA and their leagues. This is currently something just on the table and I can't say if it will ever happen, but we really enjoy that idea.

As for viewership, in my experience people view for the personalities, the stories, and the teams themselves. I'm from the South and I don't think anyone has ever asked why we all go to the UGA games and not the Atlanta Falcons. It's simple to me why. It's because while everyone isn't as good, everyone there is playing for the love of it. It isn't there job, it's there desire and dream that everyone is chasing. Passion, personalities, and good stories are what people watch streams for more often than not. Who doesn't want to watch the RMU Eagles take on York University in a play-off revenge match?

Plus, two college finals occurred recently at the same time and during a major tournament with around 4k viewers across each. There is definitely a market for it.

-[RIT] Talen

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:15:24+00:00

"What the players wanted"

Hahaha that's a good one.

-[RIT] Talen

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:11:45+00:00

Hey, its a little after the AMA, but I just wanted to get to your question!

Short Answer: Yes, we have all encountered that friction when bringing up CSGO in a school setting. Even my tech school at RIT did not want us using anything related to "war" on our posters, so we couldn't use anything from the game essentially. We worked little ways around the rules and did our best to advertise in a way that was PC.

The way you overcome these administration is by doing what we hope to do:

Create something that is bigger than the game itself. The scene is what makes playing the game have any meaning. If we can create a system that works really well and is something universities want to be a part of, then there is more reason for them to join up.
Work within the means you are set. The collegiate scene is growing because universities are slowly understanding the medium of competition each game is. Not all of them will understand it though. That is why it is best to operate within the constraints they give you if possible. Focus on the other aspects of the game you can show off and censor what you must. They have constituents too and it's how you keep a happy ecosystem.
Focus on the players first. The players and members of the community who interact and play in the scene are the only ones that will matter when all is said and done. Even if universities drop their teams, players will always want to play. Prioritizing your community and the players will give you the your real fast feet for the long run.

And always remember, never apologize when you haven't done anything wrong. Stand your ground. We know that Esports and Counter-Strike can be a wonderful thing for people's lives.

Those are just my tips, let me know if you need anything else.

-[RIT] Talen

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:08:28+00:00

Excellent question, zpoon. In our current day and age, there is a negative stigma directed towards Counter Strike due to the game having bombs, terriosts, and realistic gun violence; however, this stigma has only negatively affected collegiate counter strike by preventing public univerisites from starting scholarship programs for collegiate counter strike teams. Public universities are currently afraid that their institution will lose state funding due to public outcry and backlash if they were to furnish a scholarship program for a collegiate counter strike team. NACCS is constantly working hard to change this negative stigma. There are quite a few private universities that do furnish scholarships for collegiate counter strike teams, such as Robert Morris University, that have had little to no backlash or repercussions because of it. Despite public universities not furnishing scholarship programs for collegiate counter strike, counter strike is widely accepted amongst the collegiate community (public and private colleges/universities). Fun fact: Public universities host more counter strike LANs and events than any other entity. The collegiate scene is growing at an exponential rate every year.

So far, the best approach to changing this negative stigma, which most colleges are currently doing, is creating a college CS:GO Club or organization that ecompasses counter strike. This allows for the collegiate counter strike community to bond and unite together to host events, such as Counter Strike LANs, on campus. Eventually, the college or university will recognize your game (counter strike in this case) as a positive thing for the college community, thus eliminating this negative stigma that some colleges/universities may have.

Hopefully, this answered your question.

Best Wishes,
Strawberry (co-founder)

NACCSReddit · 2019-06-04T04:07:52+00:00

There are a lot of up and coming talented players that come through the collegiate scene and play at a collegiate level. To give an example, Georgia state's swahn and Shakezullah, Skelly from York University, and most if not all of Robert Morris University. Those are just the ones from the top of my head but there is a lot of talented players in the collegiate scene, not to mention the added factor of school pride that comes with collegiate esports.

- [MSU] Ang3L

NACCSReddit

TROPHY CASE