Credit: Courtesy of Jamie Nickell
After a 3-1 win against Butler Esports April 4, the Buckeyes officially qualified for the College Call of Duty League Playoffs.
The Buckeyes (16-4) are 5-2 on the second split and swept Illinois 3-0 Wednesday.
Collin Boyd, junior player for Buckeye COD, said it was great to play tough teams in split two, and hopefully they can use the experience in the playoffs.
“As for split two as a whole, it was really, really good to play better competition week in and week out. I think that was the biggest benefit to us,” Boyd said. “That’s something that, again, we saw over the course of that entire second split and something that I think will greatly benefit us going into playoffs.”
Timing was one of the biggest struggles the Buckeye COD team faced in split two. Boyd said for this team of students, it’s hard to compete and get valuable practice time between schoolwork and exams — all while not being a scholarship athlete.
“At the end of the day, we’re college students first,” Boyd said. “We have class. We have other obligations that come before playing a game. We’re not on scholarship or a club, and that started to lead to no time commitment.”
Despite the struggles, the Buckeye COD team still persevered. Boyd said the team has been able to properly manage its time, and it is more willing to compromise because its members are all in similar situations.
“We’ve found a way to kind of work around each other, learn to be better teammates with each other and be more understanding of that stuff,” Boyd said.
Head coach Brandon Daugherty said he wishes there was some more time for the team, but it was still able to adapt to a tough schedule.
“Because of the guy’s class schedules and stuff like that, I had to focus on getting them to practice,” Daugherty said.
For Daugherty, he said qualifying for the CCL Playoffs legitimized what he’s believed all season: the team can compete at a higher level.
“For me, personally, it was a little bit of a validating moment,” Daugherty said.
Although the Buckeye COD team might have been overlooked by some, Daugherty said its confidence remains strong and its gameplay affirms it.
“It doesn’t matter where we start. It doesn’t matter where everybody else sees us. It just matters where we place and where we finish the season,” Daugherty said.
