Valparaiso University hosts 11th annual Collegiate Robotics Football Championship

College students gathered together at Valparaiso University for the Collegiate Robotics Football Championship on Saturday, April 13.

89 Photos

This year marked the 11th year of the annual event. Schools such as Valparaiso, Ohio Northern, Calvin, Notre Dame, and the Navy competed in this year’s championship. Lauren Kadlec, a member of the Valpo Robotics team, is glad that they were given the opportunity to defend their title this year in front of their hometown supporters.

“This is the first time in eight years that we have hosted this event,” Kadlec said. “We’re very excited to be hosting and playing. We work all year round and love to compete. It’s a little bit high stakes since we’ve won the last two, so it should be really fun.”

Kadlec has been pleased to see the way this competition has elevated every year that she’s been a part of collegiate robotics.

“I’m so impressed with every single team,” Kadlec said. “To see where our bots were just four years ago, it looks almost unrecognizable to see where they are now and that goes for every team. Competition and creativity improve every year. It really brings out an awesome positive spirit.”

Timothy Ziemann, a member of the Valpo Robotics team, shared an appreciation for the innovative ways that each team operates.

“We’re slowly getting more teams and it’s great,” Ziemann said. “It’s nice to see newcomers and just how impressive their robots are. Every team has a different creative mind so seeing how the other robots compare to ours is pretty neat.”

Working with robots can be a tall task and requires a team effort. Ziemann describes how every team member has a responsibility to fulfill along with the importance of communication and preparation necessary to succeed.

“I like to focus more on the building side,” Ziemann said. “We have some really good freshmen that came in and have worked so hard every day. Our project managers have been great at putting in long hours to make sure that all of the robots are fixed and ready to go and upgrading constantly. On the driving side, our team has been practicing since last semester. Our coach has done a great job getting us prepared with practice, scrimmages, and helping the team mesh overall.”

The intensity of the games can skyrocket in the blink of an eye. Plenty of robots end up crashing every time. However, the thrill that comes from these high-impact moments is something that Ziemann loves the most about this experience.

“Seeing the robots break is what I look forward to the most because I love fixing them,” Ziemann said. “Once they get smashed, we have to react quickly and fix them in the heat of the moment. That’s what I like. That’s why I’m here.”

For Kadlec, the best part of this experience is giving fans a chance to see and learn about something unique.

“I’m excited to see people from the community come and witness robotics,” Kadlec said. “For some people, this might be the first time they’ve seen it. Kids are always just drawn to our box and seeing that enthusiasm from the community is so cool.”

From robots scoring touchdowns on receiving yards to impressive spin moves that faked out the defense, this competition had plenty of highlights and high energy throughout.

Check out the full results of the CRFC National Tournament on their website.

For more information on Valparaiso University, you can visit their website.