Oklahoma State University Wins First Big 12 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate CECC Qualifier, Earns Bid to CECC May Madness 2025
Stamford, CT – March 26, 2025 – The Big 12 Conference held the conference’s first ever Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament that earned a bid directly into the Collegiate Esports Commissioner’s Cup (CECC) May Madness 2025 tournament.
CECC May Madness, established in 2022, gives 84 teams in four different game titles (Overwatch 2, Rocket League, Valorant, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate) and 12 players in Street Fighter 6, a chance to face other schools from across North America and one team or player in each game are crowned as national champions.
The Big 12 Conference Qualifier was a one-day online tournament on Mar. 1 that had 11 teams from seven different schools participating, including Kansas University, the University of Houston, the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, Baylor University, the University of Colorado, Boulder, and Oklahoma State University.
“As Big 12 member institutions, we were excited to come together and host our first Big 12 esports tournament,” said Jason Cook, Vice President for Marketing and Communications and Chief Marketing Officer at Baylor University. “The esports community is only growing on our respective campuses and among prospective students. A big congratulations to Oklahoma State for earning a berth to CECC, and we look forward to what the future holds for Big 12 esports.”
In the double elimination bracket, Oklahoma State would go undefeated in the upper bracket and defeated the No.1 seed University of Houston twice, the first in a 2-1 series win in the best-of-three upper bracket finals and later 3-0 in the best-of-five grand finals to win the first ever Big 12 title.
“The Big 12 esports tournament was an incredible experience, showcasing the passion and talent within our conference,” said Shaun Noll, Manager of OSU Esports and Advisor to the Gamers of OSU. “We were very excited to see seven different Big 12 schools in our first year. Winning the tournament and securing a spot in CECC May Madness is a huge accomplishment for our team and program, and we couldn't be more excited to compete on the national stage. We want to represent our school with pride, compete at the highest level, and make a deep run in the tournament. Looking ahead, we hope the Big 12 continues to invest in and grow its esports presence, providing more opportunities for students to compete and elevate the scene to new heights.”
With the victory, Oklahoma State earned their bid to CECC May Madness 2025, set to take place May 2-4 at Esports Stadium Arlington in Texas, renowned as the largest in-person scholastic esports event in North America. The 2024 event attracted over 4 million views and 4,100 attendees, and the upcoming 2025 event marks the fifth year of CECC's celebration of collegiate esports excellence.
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Article Written by:
Keegan Ohta
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