Baylor Hosts TexSEF Undisputed State Championship Esports Competition

Contact: Lori Fogleman, 254-709-5959
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While momentum builds rapidly on its national collegiate esports program, Baylor University will welcome Texas's top middle and high school esports teams for the Texas Scholastic Esports Federation 2025 Undisputed State Championships esports competition May 1-3 at the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center on the Baylor campus.

TexSEF is an educator-run, 501(c)(3) nonprofit esports organization serving Texas Schools. Focused on student success, TexSEF promotes teamwork, leadership and career-ready skills.

“Baylor is thrilled to host the TexSEF Undisputed State Championships. We consider it an honor to share and celebrate the accomplishments of the students of our great state,” said Adam Stanley, M.Div. ’12, director of Esports and head coach at Baylor. “One of the unique elements of esports is the remote nature of the competitions; our students are able to compete interscholastically without ever leaving their campus. While that accessibility is valuable, we also recognize an embodied, on-site competition at the culmination of the season creates experiences and memories that are irreplicable. Baylor is proud to share in those experiences and memories being made by these dedicated student-competitors.”

Nearly 1,400 middle and high school students from across the state will compete in Apex Legends, iRacing, Madden, Overwatch 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (3v3), Splatoon 3, Fortnite, Street Fighter 6, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (1v1) and Valorant. Pool play begins on Thursday. On Friday, the championships will transition to bracket play. The TexSEF Undisputed State Championships finals will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday. The competition can be viewed live on TexSEF1 Twitch channel.

While competing on the Baylor campus, students will have the opportunity to learn more about Baylor University from Undergraduate Admissions and engage in game play in the Oso Esports Lounge. They also will be able to meet Stanley, who joined Baylor in March from Brewton-Parker College in Georgia, where he turned the private Baptist-affiliated college into a national esports powerhouse. His teams were the 2022-23 Rocket League Champions of the Georgia Esports League, the 2023-24 Valorant Champions of the Southeastern Esports League and the Spring 2024 Eastern Collegiate Athletics Conference Fortnite (Trios) and Valorant Champions.

A member of the board of directors for the National Association of Collegiate Esports, Stanley is quickly developing a University-sponsored competitive esports team at Baylor, which will regularly participate in national tournaments, actively recruit esports student-athletes and offer scholarships for top talent. 

While scaling up Baylor Esports, Stanley supports the community gaming efforts of Baylor’s current club-level team, OSO Esports. He also works cooperatively with the Division of Marketing and Communications and the Office of Undergraduate Admissions to supplement Baylor’s marketing and student recruitment efforts, as well as with academic units such as the School of Engineering and Computer Science in support of the University’s strategic plan, Baylor in Deeds.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Learn more about Baylor University at www.baylor.edu.