Terminology

Ballathon has its own language. It's used consistently across the entire platform.

Player

Any student participating in Ballathon. Every player has a persistent Ballathon Player Profile.

Captain

The team leader. Must be a current college athlete. Owns the team and presents its collective case.

Product Manager

Owns the Solution. Designs it and makes it tangible.

Growth Manager

Owns the Evidence. Understands the problem, users and market.

Operations Manager

Owns Resources. Determines what the team needs and how the solution becomes viable.

Free Agent

A player open to being recruited into whichever position best fits a team's needs.

Team

Four students from the same institution, led by a college athlete. The primary competitive object.

Roster

The four filled positions on a team. Locked before Kickoff.

Draft Pool

The available players at a Captain's own institution.

Draft

A Captain's invitation to a player in the Draft Pool. The player accepts or declines.

Coach

A resource who asks questions, challenges assumptions and provides perspective. Coaches do not solve the Challenge.

Judge

Evaluates the final presentation, defense and evidence. Cannot see submissions before a team presents.

Host

Leads the Pregame Team Talk and sets the competitive tone of the weekend.

Challenge

The real problem revealed at Kickoff.

Challenge Partner

The organization behind the Challenge.

Pregame

Friday. Orientation, assessments, draft, team talk, warm-up, huddle.

Kickoff

Saturday 8:00 AM. The Challenge drops and the Game Clock starts.

Game Clock

The visible countdown to the Final Whistle.

Checkpoint

Saturday noon accountability check. No formal score.

Scrimmage

Saturday evening informal presentation and candid feedback. No score, no elimination.

Final Whistle

Sunday noon. Work ends. Hands off.

The Box

The controlled waiting environment after the Final Whistle. No devices or materials.

Pitch

The Captain's five-minute case: Tell Us.

Score

A judge's evaluation. Ballathon scoring methodology is under development.

Postgame Report

Individual development feedback produced after the event.

Leaderboard

The National Intercollegiate Ballathon Leaderboard. Team Cards only.

Season

A competitive cycle of Ballathons feeding the national leaderboard.

Champion

The winning team of a Ballathon.