Power on the Pitch: PEC Rocket League Recap

The first week of Rocket League for the Power Esports Conference has concluded. From an exciting game five overtime to the first match of the season live from Syracuse, New York, we will walk through all the matchups and look forward to what’s coming next week. 

The first official Rocket League match of the PEC regular season had the Spartans knock off Syracuse three games to one in the best-of-five series. Michigan State was ranked second in the preseason poll, while Syracuse came in at number four. 

I had a chance to catch up with Connor “opp_bomb” when the team arrived back on campus. “Starting off with a win for the season is great,” he told me. “We still have to build chemistry and improve to contend for a title.” Connor is one of the two returning players for Michigan State, and he has a strong presence on and off the field for the Spartans. 

While the Spartans came away with a 3-1 victory, not everything went to plan. “We were really disconnected,” Connor continued. “We need to clean up our composure on LAN, we’re a completely different team than online.” This haunted the Spartans last year. They were undefeated in PEC play through the fall and spring, holding a perfect 14-0 regular season record. But in the championship in Vegas, that perfect record was snapped. Boise State beat them not only once, but again, to be crowned 2024-2025 PEC Rocket League champions. 

Playing in a live environment introduces pressure that can disrupt communication and composure, something Connor acknowledged. The Power Esports Kickoff saw over 50 people in and around the Syracuse Esports space in upstate New York this past weekend. An away setting for Michigan State was something new this year that they had never faced. Playing a true road game for the Spartans proved difficult, but with a convincing 3-1 win over Syracuse, the scoreline didn’t fully reflect the challenge.

Two new schools to the Power Esports Conference battled it out in week one. Baylor and Minnesota both joined the conference in August this year, but only one could move to 1-0 after week one. Led by new signings Andy and Hockser, Baylor swept the Golden Gophers 3-0. 

Director of Esports at Baylor University Adam Stanley and I caught up after a big win for the Bears. “JT walked on for us this year. He came to school as a senior and never thought he would be playing alongside Andy and Hockser,” Adam stated. “We were not supposed to have a team this year,” Adam continued. “It was kind of last minute, and we are super fortunate with Andy and Hockser coming, and then JT stepping in and rounding out the roster.” The Bears had an unforgettable first week of PEC, outscoring Minnesota 16-2 over the three games. Baylor looks ahead to face Nebraska next week, while Minnesota prepares to battle Big Ten opponent Ohio State.

Utah and Ohio State was, hands down, the best game to catch Monday night. Two goals in under 40 seconds by Utah forced overtime in Game 5. Then, under a minute in, BranJ slotted home the winner to give the Utes their first-ever PEC victory. 

After a thrilling game-five overtime goal, Bransen “BranJ” Jorgensen and I had a chance to speak about the Utes’ performance. “We were able to clutch up against Ohio State,” Bransen said. “We’re feeling confident going into the next series.” The Utes have their eyes set on Syracuse, who they face next week. “We’re going to be playing in a lot more scrims and just working on our team chemistry,” he added. Utah came in sixth in the preseason coaches' poll, two spots behind Syracuse. 

The fourth and final series of the first week of PEC play saw Kansas face off against Nebraska. Kansas got out to an early lead by taking the first two games of the series, but Nebraska didn’t plan to go down without a fight, stomping Kansas in game three with a scoreline of 5-1. With the penultimate game on the horizon, both teams came prepared. Kansas grabbed a 2-0 lead, but Nebraska tied it back up with 1:16 left on the clock. With only 26 seconds left, Alpacca slotted one home for Kansas to wrap the series up 3-1. 

Kansas had a solid finish to PEC last year, but they brought in a freshman to raise their level this season. “He has a great mentality,” Kyle “Alpacca” Maxxox told me. “We all want to grind and improve throughout this year, so I’m optimistic about the direction our team is headed considering we started the season off with a W.” Some might say that the Jayhawks pulled off an upset in week one. Nebraska was ranked fifth, while Kansas came in seventh. “This is the best RL roster KU has ever fielded,” Alpacca stated. A new sense of beginning over in Lawrence could make them the team to watch this season. 

With nine teams in PEC, one team gets a bye each week of the season. The defending champions, Boise State, had that bye in week one. They also won the PEC Kickoff event in Syracuse this past weekend, and right now, it looks like no one can stop them. Will it be a new team to the league like Baylor or Utah? Could an overlooked Kansas bring them a challenge? Are we going to see a rematch of last year’s championship game with Boise State facing off against the Spartans?

With the first week of PEC Rocket League games done, there are still a lot of unanswered questions. One thing is certain: the gap at the top has closed, but can anyone overtake the defending champions?