Esports 2/4/2026 5:10:00 PM

Blinn Call of Duty outlasts UT-Dallas for CCL win

The Buccaneers' Rocket League team fell to Shawnee State

Esports 2/4/2026 5:10:00 PM

Blinn Call of Duty outlasts UT-Dallas for CCL win

The Buccaneers' Rocket League team fell to Shawnee State

The Blinn College esports Call of Duty and Rocket League teams opened their respective spring seasons Tuesday with mixed results.

The Buccaneers' Call of Duty squad of Jaden Navarro, Aariz Ali, Semaj Howard, and Daniel Gonzalez defeated the University of Texas at Dallas 3-2 in a best-of-five Collegiate Call of Duty (CCL) bout.

Blinn is now 1-0 in the West Sun Belt Conference.

Tuesday's matchup pitted the four Bucs against the Fire Ants, with the teams attempting to collect three wins across three modes of play in the first-person-shooter game:

Hardpoint: Teams secure rotating capture points, earning points for control. A team wins by reaching 250 points first.
Search and Destroy: Teams alternate attacking and defending, with the goal to plant or defuse an objective. The first team to win 6 rounds claims victory.
Overload: Teams are separate areas on a map compete to capture an Overload Device, and must transport it to one of two detonation zones on the opposing team's area. The match ends when either team scores eight points.

In the opening Hardpoint round (Scar map), UT-Dallas earned a 250-216 win. In map two (Search and Destroy on the Colossus map), the Bucs rebounded for a 6-1 triumph. In the Overload round on the Scar map, Blinn outlasted UT-Dallas in overtime for a 4-3 victory and a 2-1 series edge. The Comets evened the series in the return to Hardpoint on the Exposure map, picking up a 250-149 win. The deciding Search and Destroy round on Scar came down to a clutch performance from Navarro, who eliminated three players late to push the Bucs to a 6-4 win.

"That was a clutch finish from Jaden," Blinn assistant coach and Call of Duty coach Ryan Lucich said. "We haven't gotten much practice in with our two new players this semester (Howard and Gonzalez), so we weren't too sure what to expect tonight, but they also held their own and contributed to the win. Starting the season off and our re-entry into CCL with a win is a big moment for this team. We hope to carry this momentum into our upcoming matches."

Blinn Call of Duty continues its CCL season with a matchup against St. Mary's University at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 10.

Elsewhere, in National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) Varsity Premier Rocket League play, the Bucs took on Shawnee State University and fell 3-0 in a best-of-five series.

Edward Tejada, Aaron Konen (Subbed out 3rd match), Vallentino Rossi, and Khalil Nicholson competed for Blinn.

The Bucs are now 0-1 in the West Central Conference.

Rocket League combines elements of soccer with fast-paced car mechanics. Teams of three players use rocket-powered vehicles to hit a ball into the opponent's goal. The team with the most goals during a five-minute round wins.

Shawnee State earned 4-0, 7-0, and 10-1 wins.

"This was a tough loss and a clear reminder of the level of speed and execution required to compete at the top of NACE," Blinn head coach and Rocket League coach Kyle Murto said. "While the result was not what we wanted, the match provided valuable insight into areas that need improvement as we continue to develop and prepare for future competition."

Blinn's Rocket League faces Tennessee State University in a NACE bout at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 10.

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Players Mentioned

Aaron Konen: Freshman; Rocket League

Vallentino Rossi: Sophomore; Rocket League

Aariz Ali: Sophomore; Call of Duty

Semaj Howard: Freshman; Call of Duty

Jaden Navarro: Freshman; Call of Duty

Daniel Gonzalez: Freshman; Call of Duty

Players Mentioned

Aaron Konen
: Freshman; Rocket League

Vallentino Rossi
: Sophomore; Rocket League

Aariz Ali
: Sophomore; Call of Duty

Semaj Howard
: Freshman; Call of Duty

Jaden Navarro
: Freshman; Call of Duty

Daniel Gonzalez
: Freshman; Call of Duty