ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA – Winthrop University Athletics Esports Head Coach Josh Sides has been named a founding member of an advisory committee for the National Association of Esports Coaches and Directors (NAECAD; pronounced as "Nay-cad"), announced at the recent UB Tech conference in Orlando.
NAECAD launched as the first professional organization for competitive esports coaches and directors at all levels of competitive play, including club, high school, college and professional, at the UB Tech conference. The NAECAD’s mission is to "serve, legitimize and advance competitive esports at all levels with NAECAD members at the epicenter of leadership, advocacy and professional development." The association wants esports to be viewed as "a traditional competitive sport with highly trained NAECAD members leading the professional development, growth and quality of competitive esports."
"I am excited to be able to play a role in shaping the development and direction of the competitive landscape for this new and growing field," Sides said. "It will be an awesome opportunity to be a voice for the collegiate competitive scene and in making sure that the scene is moving in a direction that is beneficial to the sport as a whole and to what we are building here at Winthrop."
The founding members of NAECAD's first advisory committee represent a group of experienced leaders in competitive esports. They are:
Justin Bragg, Illinois College
Shaun Byrne, St. Clair College
Patrick Chou, OMEN by HP
Toby Ebel, Baker University
Callum Fletcher, Illinois Wesleyan University
Dana Hustedt, Grand View University
Ramsey Jamoul, Midwest Esports
Michael Jones, Drury University
Josh Knutson, Bytespeed
Joshua Pann, college esports specialist, HP Inc.
Nathan Ragsdell, Midland University
Kevin Reape, University of Missouri
Josh Sides, Winthrop University
Derek Spinell, University of Mount Union
Mike Szostek, Olivet Nazarene University
Jason Bauer, Grand View University
Jay Prescott, Grand View University
For more information, visit the Winthrop Athletics website at www.winthropeagles.com.
