Kodiaks name three new Esports head coaches for the 2023-24 season

Oct. 6, 2023 - The Lethbridge College Kodiaks are excited to announce Jaston Wickend, Nate Johnson and Samuel Young as the new Esports head coaches! 

Jaston Wickend will be coaching the Rocket League team. He’s looking to bring new ways of coordination and communication to the Kodiaks to really dominate the field in Rocket League. Communication is critical in any sport and that doesn’t change in an esports game either, so he’ll be looking to push effective communication as well as overall team coordination. He’s excited to pass on his positive experience as a Kodiaks student athlete through “meeting new people and making friendships with them over each season.”  He hopes to build off of getting second place in the division last season and playing on stage against some of the best universities in Alberta at the Alberta Esports Expo.

Nate Johnson will be the new coach of the League of Legends team and has plans to bring a focus in the game’s neutral objectives and the strengths to be gained by taking them. He also wants to help the team in the rotations that are required to successfully gain that advantage. “I intend to bring discipline to help our student athletes succeed not just in the game but in their studies as well,” says Johnson “I want to help develop a strong thriving community that can overcome the challenges that it will inevitably face.” Johnson was recently part of the inaugural season of the Kodiaks League of Legends Esports team last year. He earned the Simulacrum Interactive Inc. Esports Leadership Award at the KODI’s last year.

Samuel Young will be taking charge of the Valorant team. He knows that inside the game the communication among teammates is a heavy factor for success. “I understand the layout, current foundation and what it means to be a Kodiak,” says Young. “Being a student athlete can put a lot of stress on your players so I’d like to do what I can to relieve that stress and keep my players mental game up.” Young was a part of the exploratory year of the Esports program in 2021-22, and he’s been able to see how the sport has evolved not just within the Kodiaks but how it has taken the world by storm. 

All three coaches are looking forward to the challenges of becoming a collegiate coach for the first time. Their experience as former Kodiaks student-athletes gives them a unique look to the job as they understand the demands of what their players are going through.

“Esports is a true up and coming collegiate sport and what an incredible opportunity for the Kodiaks and Lethbridge College to have the support of administration to pursue this level of competition in it!” says Todd Caughlin, Kodiaks Athletics Director. “The fact that we are able to bring three coaches onto our staff that have been associated with the college and understand our culture as an athletics department is exciting! Can’t wait to see where we go!” 

With new coaches comes new ideas, “We have the opportunity to create a strong program and that needs to begin at its roots,” says Johnson. “I believe the next few years we should focus on really building the community around us.” They have goals of reaching out to local high schools and creating bonds to help both of their programs. 

Last year was the first year the Kodiaks Esports team played other schools in the Eastern College Athletic Conference and all three of the teams made it to their division’s playoffs. Kodiaks Esports will have lots of changes this year as they transition into the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) where they will be joining a conference that includes more than 250 schools across North America.

All interested Lethbridge College students are encouraged to fill out the Esports tryout form.