TOP DAWG Idea Pitch Competition

TOP DAWG New Venture Championship

TOP DAWG Business Plan Competition

In October 2002, Bulldog Entrepreneurs, formerly the Association of Business, Engineering, and Science Entrepreneurs (ABESE), founded the Louisiana Tech TOP DAWG Business Plan Competition. The competition is designed to give students an opportunity to start business ventures and gain real-world experience as entrepreneurs thru business planning for the top ten ideas from the TOP DAWG Idea Pitch. Multidisciplinary teams participating in the competition are comprised of undergraduate students, graduate students and recent alumni. The winning teams receive prize money that can be used to fund their ideas and make them a reality. Eligibility for the prize money requires a team to produce a written business plan deck and give an oral presentation of the plan to a panel of judges. The teams must consist of 2 – 6 members comprised of undergraduates, graduate students, and alumni who have graduated within the past year. The key objective of this event is promote and nurture a culture of innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship across the Louisiana Tech campus which will encourage graduates to remain in this area and stimulate economic development in North Louisiana.

“I've been blessed to find people who are smarter than I am, and they help me to execute the vision I have.”

-Russell Simmons, founder of Def Jam

“The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. It’s as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But  today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.”

-Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari & Chuck E. Cheese’s