Dr. William Fisackerly—Fisack, as he’s known online—is the newest member of the OU Esports team. A passionate lecturer and researcher, Fisackerly strengthens the OU Esports program through his research on the sports business with an esports focus. Having played competitively during his undergraduate years, Fisackerly could not pass up the opportunity to join the esports program at Florida Southern College in his final year.
“There are very few things I’ve done in my life that there has been, like, no negative aspect of it,” he said.
From there, his passion for competitive esports propelled him forward. He was later awarded Top 2000 North America, a prestigious award for collegiate esports teams. Even when he could no longer play on the team, Fisackerly always kept that passion for the industry.
Why OU?
When applying for jobs, he said, “OU wanted me from the get-go.” He explained how the interviewers were shocked that he knew who the OU Esports director, Moog, was. “I research collegiate esports—I really sure hope I know who Moog is!”
He later said, “Being able to even have a small part in shaping the future and the students of [OU Esports] is an incredible opportunity.”
What Makes OU Esports Special?
Fisackerly went on to explain how unique OU’s esports program is. “OU Esports has a model with ECCI (Esports and Co-Curricular Innovation) and gaming and Sooner Esports, and all those different areas…it’s special what is happening here.”
“If you were to ask me two or three years ago what makes a good esports program,” he said, “I would have a very varsity-centered, competition-centered answer to give you because that’s what most programs are doing.”
“Most programs are just adding a competitive team and just hiring a coach to oversee all of them and that’s how you get esports in the door,” he elaborated.
“What I’ve learned in my conversations with Moog, and especially just looking at the landscape of esports, is that we need to have directed growth. We need to have a vision for that growth.”
In his dissertation, he recalled that he asked esports directors about their “visions and responsibilities, and all of them identified this holistic growth of esports, where you have to grow community, competition, and academics all together to provide the best opportunity for students.”
Fisackerly said that OU’s varsity esports teams are excellent because of this combination of factors—academics, community, and competition—growing together. “It’s a long-term model; it’s a sustainable model.”
Fisackerly’s Contribution
An expert in sports business, including esports research and publications, one of Fisackerly’s main jobs is “overseeing the esports certificate,” which is an undergraduate certificate for students who have taken esports-specific business and management classes.
He teaches four classes this semester related to sports business, including one esports finance class. The Spring 2025 semester will include more esports classes to fulfill the certificate, so keep that in mind when registration rolls around.
Fisackerly said that his goal is to teach his students “the skills to remain in the esports industry [so] the esports industry can be sustained for not two years, five years, but well into the future for now.”
Fisackerly was nominated for the Scholar of the Year from NACE in 2024, the National Association of Collegiate Esports. This let him present to a large group of similar-minded people and educators. “It was an absolute honor to be nominated,” he said, “because it made me feel like I was doing the right thing.”
One of his goals for the next few years is to make the esports certificate successful. Fisackerly explained, “Successful means that we have…an enthusiastic body of students who are learning this context, who are also getting experience and contributing to the success of ECCI, and landing jobs in the esports industry, creating a sustainable model for esports to last for years to come.”
“Everything that I do from an esports mindset needs to be in a manner of building up our industry.”
A Final Word
When asked about his final thoughts, Fisackerly said, “It’s easy to look at the esports industry right now and…think that esports is a fad that reached its peak. But I like to…understand that there is growth in our industry when we don’t try and take advantage of the market, but rather create value for the fans and players that want to be a part of it. My hope is that I can make just a small impact in making that model more sustainable and more focused on…[creating] value together.”
Clearly, Fisackerly main focus in his research, classes, and esports contributions is creating sustainability and growth in this field. The most important aspect to him, however, is developing and supporting the aspirations of passionate players, gamers, and esports community members for years to come.
