For Mike Rolih and Lauren Scott, it was the two-minute drill times two.
Under bright lights, the co-creators of startup Go Rout had just four minutes Saturday to pitch to a panel of judges how their wearable technology could improve communication between coaches and players on the field during football games.
They do it through a device players wear that coaches can send alerts to, telling them about new plays and showing animations depicting what they’re supposed to do. Go Rout ended up winning the NFL’s second annual ” 1st & Future ” startup pitch competition, held in Houston before the Super Bowl.
“All of our hard work is starting to pay off,” Rolih said.
Go Rout was among nine early stage companies pitching to an audience also featuring several NFL team owners, executives and leaders in medicine. It’s put together by the NFL, General Electric and this year’s co-sponsor, the Texas Medical Center , which is hoping the tech industry can bring innovative ideas to improve player health and safety.
More than 200 sports-related startups applied to participate in programs like the GE-NFL Head Health Initiative , a multiyear, $60 million effort to come up with new ways to quickly diagnose and improve treatment for traumatic brain injuries.
