LAS VEGAS, NV (November 28th, 2023) – The inaugural Scholars Awards took place at Resorts World in Las Vegas, delivering a first-of-its-kind ceremony that celebrated the best in College Esports across thirteen awards. The event brought together the prominent figures of the college esports scene, with a handful of professional esports figures presenting awards throughout the night.

Hosted by Elyse “Herculyse” Herrera and Sean “Stax” Stackhouse, the Scholars Awards shone a spotlight on college esports student-led clubs and varsity programs alike and even celebrated prominent and rising figures within the college esports space.
Award winners included Niner Esports, taking home the Club of the Year award after securing a 1.5 million dollar grant from the state of North Carolina to build an esports facility. National powerhouses and former World Champions, Northwood VALORANT, took home the Team of the Year title.

“One of the reasons that I decided to join the team earlier this year was because of the opportunity to come in and build new IP like the Scholars,” Sean Kiely, Chief Revenue Officer of the Esports Awards said. “I’m so excited for what we’ve done today and I promise you that this team has worked so so hard to get this right and we will continue to make this better every year.”
Scholars Awards Winners
The complete list of Scholars Awards winners are:
- Team of the Year – Northwood VALORANT
- Conference of the Year – NACE
- Commercial Partner of the Year – MSI
- Good in Gaming Award, presented by Team Liquid – Jacquie Lamm
- Tournament Organizer of the Year – NECC
- Collegiate Student Leader of the Year – AJ Taylor
- LAN of the Year – CECC 2023
- Club of the Year – Niner Esports
- Global Impact on Collegiate Gaming, presented by Gen.G – Daniel Clerke
- Program Director of the Year – Jesse Bodony
- Player of the Year, presented by GamerTech – Emiliano “Durtho” Flores
- Institution of the Year – Boise State University
- Program of the Year – University of Oklahoma




