MANILA — After outlasting 56 other teams, only eight squads remain in the hunt for the Smart University Clash title picture.

University of Santo Tomas Teletigers Gold, Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals, Holy Cross of Davao College Teams A and B, Viridus Arcus of the De La Salle University – Manila and Far Eastern U’s Invicta, as well as Kabud Esports of the University of Cebu – Banilad and Excelsiors Esports of Carlos Hilado Memorial State University from Negros Occidental are still all gunning for the gold in the tournament’s grand finals that will be held at the SM North Edsa on Sunday.

Opening the knockout quarterfinals round are UST and EAC, while Holy Cross of Davao’s Teams A and B will follow suit.

DLSU and FEU will lock horns thereafter, and University of Cebu and Carlos Hilado Memorial State U will conclude the quarters.

Aside from gunning for the tournament’s top prize, the University Clash also wants to promote the participants’ education while being a platform for them to develop their skills and provide them with career opportunities.

It aims to bridge the gap between esports and education, and to show how students can have a productive future if they choose to continue on this venture.

The tournament is the latest venture for the Collegiate Center for Esports (CCE) as its mother company as it drives to further esports development among the different colleges and universities nationwide.

This is after the CCE held its third season of the Collegiate Center Championship (CCC) with the Lyceum Pirate Esports capturing their third straight title.

With the help of the Commission on Higher Education, other competitions that are also aiding with this mission are last year’s MLBB SEA Campus Invitational, CCE University Clash, and the SEA Invitationals.

Still in line are next month’s Philippine Collegiate Championship which will feature 16 teams in the grand finals after 2,000 schools went head-to-head in the year-long qualifiers.