Opening doors in gaming, on both sides of the screen. Director of Esports Growth & Development at Full Sail University and a creator known as DamnitBennett, using each side to advocate for students and for collegiate esports as a whole.
The work splits into two clear lanes, but they feed each other. Being a creator in the wider industry lets me advocate for collegiate esports, and being in collegiate esports gives that advocacy somewhere to land. The goal underneath both: open doors for students.
For 20 years I have been part of Full Sail, now building its esports culture and supporting the Armada collegiate team. I connect collegiate esports to the wider industry, advocate for it everywhere I go, and turn those connections into real opportunities for students.
I build community around FPS and extraction shooters and keep the door open for anyone who wants in. The Crabcore is proof that competitive gaming spaces can still be welcoming ones.
I advocate for collegiate esports two ways: for my students, and for the industry as a whole. The throughline is simple. Every relationship I build as a creator, every event I get invited to, every person I cross paths with along the way becomes something I can hand back to my students. A conversation at a booth turns into an internship. A creator I share a green room with turns into a guest speaker. A handshake at DreamHack turns into a jersey on a global stage. None of it stays mine. It all flows back to the students and the programs coming up behind me, because the whole point of earning a seat at the table is pulling up more chairs.
Years of building presence and relationships as a featured DreamHack creator paid off for the whole program. A Full Sail collegiate esports jersey was featured in DreamHack's own branding outside the Creator Hub, putting the school on one of the scene's biggest stages, and those same connections opened doors for students to work the event itself.
My roots with GCX have grown into a real pipeline for Full Sail students: volunteer opportunities that put them face to face with their favorite creators, complimentary tickets for those volunteers, paid production roles for the students learning that craft, and discounted admission across the board. It is collegiate esports meeting the industry in real time, with more students in the room every year.
Strong, lasting relationships with industry leaders turn into more than introductions. Connecting that network to the esports initiatives at Full Sail has helped bring student scholarships to life, backed by Dr. Lupo, one of streaming's most respected philanthropists.
There is so much more to the world of esports than just being good at the games. Join Bennett and his guests on a journey through the industry.
I built the show because students tend to fixate on the end goal: the dream job. But nobody can teach luck, and the journey is what actually gets you there. So each week I sit down with leaders and guests from across the industry and dig into how they really got where they are, the wins and the detours included.
It is part interview, part roadmap. The thing I want every student to walk away with is that the job that felt like a side quest at the time, the odd gig, the volunteer shift, the role that seemed off-path, is often the exact thing that opens the next door and gets you to the next achievement.
Watch on YouTube ↗A decade of building community around the games where one wrong move costs you everything. Live every weekday at 7 AM ET, with daily short-form videos, gear reviews, and esports education across every platform that matters.
The Crabcore began as a tribute to a friend we lost, someone who loved crabcore music like Attack Attack! and throwing the crabcore pose. You know the one. What started as an homage has grown into one of the most welcoming communities on the internet, built on a simple belief: gaming is for everyone. Whoever you are, there is always a spot for you in the Crabcore.
Beyond Full Sail and beyond the stream, I keep finding ways to show up for gaming. Through Arcadian Glitch LLC, the studio I co-own, I build and run free tools and trackers that serve some of the most passionate communities in the games people love. Find a community, build the thing it needs, keep the door open. Same mission, different medium.
The umbrella behind the trackers and shows below, serving the Destiny 2 and Gray Zone Warfare communities. Built the same way every time: fast, accurate, and community-first.
Tracks Xur, Destiny 2's elusive exotic vendor: where he is each week and whether his stock is worth your shards. By 2018, "where is Xur" had grown into one of the most searched "where is" phrases on the internet, and the site is still serving the community years later.
Tracks Vulture in Gray Zone Warfare, including live hunts on stream. Same engine and same community focus as the Xur tracker, pointed at a brand new game.
A weekly show I co-hosted, breaking down Xur's location and inventory live. Now sunset, but the whereisxur.com tracker it grew from is still going strong.
Corsair ambassador · code DAMNITBENNETT · cor.sr/damnitbennett
A decade-plus of collaborations across games, esports, pro sports, and charity, spanning brand activations, live events, and content.
If you have heard a Full Sail University commercial in the last decade, there is a good chance the voice you were hearing was mine.
Voice over is my other studio craft. Here is some of the work I have done for Full Sail University over the years, and I am open to new projects beyond campus too.
More spots in the full Full Sail playlist ↗
Booths, broadcasts, events, and the people who make this worth doing. A decade on the ground, in pictures. Hover to slow a row, click any shot to blow it up.
Whether I am hosting industry guests, running a major event activation, or building my own platform from scratch, the work is the same: opening doors and creating real opportunities for students and the broader gaming community.
Industry partnership, a guest spot on the show, voiceover, or you just want to lurk in the Crabcore. Pick a platform.