As the Fall 2026 semester continues, the OU Rocket League team has been eager to win, grow, and develop. This desire was showcased within the first week of September; the team had already played in various qualifiers. OU’s Rocket League team consists of three players, all of whom are freshman students.
With the team hungry to compete, they deserve a proper introduction!
Meet the team!
Jackson “Jcksn” Fogt is the captain of the Rocket League team and is a freshman student who is passionate about data analysis. When he was deciding which college to attend, he was debating between majoring in mechanical engineering or data science.
When he saw OU had a five-year Master’s program through Industrial and Systems Engineering, he knew that major would fit him best.
“I’m not one to build things,” said Jcksn. “I like making things work together.”
Jcksn grew his love for data analytics in high school. He studied data for both his high school swim team and the eSports team.
“I’d been practicing using data analytics progression throughout the season [for everyone in the state] to determine who was going to qualify for the championships,” said Jcksn.
“[In my junior] year, I ended up helping one of our seniors figure out that he was very close to breaking the school record. He ended up shattering [the record] by two seconds and got fifth in the state.”
For his high school’s eSports team, Jcksn studied the analytics for Rocket League. He’d scout the opponents and analyze their boost padding, movement speeds and tendencies. He’d bring that information to his team and debrief before each game.
“They wouldn’t know what all the numbers necessarily mean, but they would know that if their [opponent] naturally went faster or a person stayed in the net, they wouldn’t be surprised when it came around to game one of a series.”
Jcksn knew about OU’s esports program before joining the college. He messaged back and forth with a couple of people in the program asking for advice and their opinions. Jcksn initially had a full ride at Cumberland University but decided against it because the school did not have any form of engineering or data science. Jacob “Oculus” Ross gave him advice that resonated with him.
“[Oculus] told me that you only do eSports for x amount of years,” said Jcksn. “Your degree, you live with. That’s your career. Esports is just an opportunity; it shouldn’t be why you’re going there.”
His friend and Rocket League teammate from high school, “Pug” Brown, was already going to OU, and he was excited about being on the team together.
Rocket League has been a big part of Jcksn’s life. He got the game in 2017 as an Easter present after spending his free time watching YouTube videos about it. He went through phases with the game. Initially, he hated it because he found it difficult and unlike any other game, but he kept playing, which led to him being a national championship contender twice in high school.
Jcksn became so fond of the game because he considered it one of the most fast-paced games out there.
“I would say it rivals some FPS first-person shooter games as far as the level of speed you need to think and strategize with,” Jcksn said. “But the strategy is completely different from an FPS game in that it also takes elements from sports like soccer. I like sports myself. I love watching basketball and football, so taking elements that make sense to me, like the strategy and positioning, and translating it into a game where you can fly your cars around is unlike anything else.”
The game has also taught the captain a few life skills. Originally, it taught him to stick to things no matter how hard or easy they are. It provided the perspective that, a lot of times, the best things are often hardest at the beginning.
“Now [it’s taught me] more [about] leadership and communication. Communicating between leagues and players to schedule scrims. There’s all these different people on Discord networking, and it’s taught me to open my horizons and not be afraid to put myself out there.”
Chase “Pug” Brown is a freshman who loves building things with his own hands and has always had a connection to OU. He was originally born in Missouri and moved to Oklahoma when he was around four.
Pug knew he wanted to do something with engineering. He always liked designing and creating contraptions, and so he believed mechanical engineering was the way to go. His grandpa is a huge fan of OU and always watched the games growing up. With the campus only being forty minutes away from home, it allows him to have enough space for independence but still be close to his family.
Pug knew about OU’s esports program going into college.
“I knew it existed,” said Pug. “But I didn’t know much until I got here. [Jcksn] brought up [to] me that we could try out OU, and I said we should go for it. I played with him on our high school team and a few other independent [competitions].”
Rocket League has also been a huge part of Pug’s life. He loves how unique it is.
“Can’t find another game like it,” said Pug. “Except for the predecessor, it’s its own game. [It has] its own mechanics. You have so much control over your individual power in the game, and it provides so much freedom with how you want to play. I just fell in love with it.”
Rocket League has taught him a lot about teamwork and communication.
“You’re always talking in Rocket League. I don’t think there’s a single second where you’re supposed to not be talking in [the game] for comms.”
The team has spent a lot of time preparing for the season. They have done several scrims and a few tournaments and have gotten to know each other to build chemistry.
“I really just want us to do the best we can,” Pug said. “Taking the time to improve not only on our own, but as a team together [is important]. We’re still learning each other’s play styles, but once we do, we’re going to be a great team.”
Jake “Waz” Wlazo is a freshman majoring in Sports Business with a minor in science. He knew that was right for him because of his interest in the numbers behind sports. His curiosity about the numbers is also why he picked finance as a minor. Waz loves analytical math and enjoys seeing how these numbers function in a sports organization or team.
Like his peers, he played Rocket League for a long time. He quickly became fond of the game because it highlighted his interests.
“I played soccer for thirteen years,” said Waz. “It was already familiar to me—[it was] just car soccer!”
Playing the game for so long has taught him many skills and lessons. Waz claimed his biggest lesson through Rocket League has been the social awareness piece of it. Tone and timing are important skills to get right, and Waz gained that ability through gaming.
“I never played with real teammates, just with many people. I had the opportunity to speak with a lot of people and respond accordingly depending on what they were receptive to. I get to do a lot of business now online with the organization.”
Before the season started, the group worked hard to practice together.
“We did about three scrimmages a week along with gameplay review and all that,” said Waz. “We have all been talking as friends and gone out to eat together. Building our relationship can translate into in-game chemistry.”
He’s also growing to understand the chemistry between him and an audience.
“It was a little bit nerve-wracking [to live stream] because there’s actually people watching, which I’ve never been used to. Even my parents were watching me! You can definitely feel more tension.”
With a team so new and ready to compete, they’ve worked together enough to understand each others’ playstyles.
Jcksn believes his team thinks of him as an anchor and the person to perform crazy, flashy plays. Jcksn is confident his team considers his play style flexible and that he does what is needed when they need it. Whether that’s him trying to demo [hitting an enemy’s car so hard it explodes] people off the field to create advantages or anchoring on defense, he’ll support where it’s needed.
“When people are technically more skilled than me, I’ll adapt in a role [where I’ll be] further back and play cleanup or defending the net,” said Jcksn. “In the in-game competitive scene, I hit top 1500 global, but my mechanics were not top 1500 in the world. I’ve learned to adapt to different styles and everyone’s unique interests.”
When asking his fellow teammates, this is what they had to say about his playstyle:
Pug: I mean, he can really be on the field. I’ve seen him. He has great defense and offense. He plays second man well, and he’s always ready for a pass. I think I inspired him a bit with the demos, [as] he’s increasing his demo count.
Waz: I think he’s the most aggressive. He’s definitely the leader. He communicates the most and knows more about the game mode than me. I’m new to playing 3v3 like this, so he definitely knows a lot more. He’s more, you know, fluid with his touches.
Pug believes he is definitely a more forceful player. He thinks his team would consider him aggressive.
“I like to go upfield and get a demo when I can,” Pug said. “I play around everyone. I find myself in the third man position. Sometimes the second man.”
When asking his fellow teammates, this is what they had to say about his playstyle:
Jcksn: The dude loves demos. He is not the most mechanical player in the world, but he is very smart when it comes to trying to use the car side of hitting the ball and giving the team the best opportunity to score. A lot of times, you won’t see him at the top of the leaderboard, but you’ll see him making the most impact. He’s very defensive-minded, like me.
Waz: He’s the game manager. He likes to take his time. He doesn’t play anything too flashy, and he holds down the fundamentals, and that makes the team even better. You need a good mix, especially when there’s only three of you.
Waz has played with the others for the least amount of time, and yet he considered it easy to decide their opinions on his play style.
“It’s not hard for me to judge what they think my play style is because…as a team in 3v3, everyone has to do the same thing,” said Waz .”I [would say] my play style would be more aggressive, almost as much as [Jcksn].”
When asking his fellow teammates, this is what they had to say about his playstyle:
Jcksn: Waz does a very good job of translating scoring opportunities that might work in twos and making them work in threes, whether they should or not. He is a very active shooter and very consistent with mechanics. He is our offensive engine.
Pug: He usually plays first or second man, and he’s very good with mechanics. He got a clip earlier, and I think we yelled so hard, I hurt my ears in the headphones. Waz was going off the sidewall, and he perfectly hit the ball to Jcksn. Coming off the wall like that and hitting a dive on a live stream is just insane.
Has the season gone well so far?
As the team has progressed, they have found a lot of success.
“If you win, you earn; if you lose, you learn,” said Jcksn. “ A loss isn’t necessarily a failure; it’s just an opportunity for learning. And a win isn’t necessarily a success either. You might earn a place, a rank, or money, but after that, the grind keeps going.”
