College Athletes Raise $5.2M in 60-Minute Fundraisers

Imagine raising nearly $200,000 for your athletic department in the time it takes to watch a single game.

That's exactly what 610 student-athletes at Lander University accomplished using Hour-A-Thon, a fundraising platform turning traditional multi-week campaigns into competitive 60-minute sprints. The school raised $197,198 in one hour, averaging $323 per athlete.

The concept is simple but powerful. Athletes use personalized text messages to reach supporters during a designated hour while live leaderboards track which teams are winning the fundraising race. The competitive format taps into what athletes already love: turning everything into a championship.

North Greenville University took home the highest per-athlete average, with 401 student-athletes raising $183,050 at an impressive $456 per person. Milligan University and University of Mount Olive also surpassed the $160,000 mark with strong participation across all their sports programs.

The platform solves a persistent problem in college athletics. Traditional fundraising campaigns drag on for weeks, pulling coaches and players away from training and academics. Hour-A-Thon condenses all that effort into a single focused event that teams call their "one-hour championship."

The technology makes it work seamlessly. Athletes send quick personalized messages through the platform's SMS system, supporters can donate with a few taps, and funds arrive in team accounts within two days. No complicated paperwork, no endless follow-ups.

The Ripple Effect

The success is spreading rapidly across collegiate athletics. Hour-A-Thon has become the official fundraising partner for multiple conferences, including Conference Carolinas and the Sooner Athletic Conference.

More than 15,000 student-athletes have now participated, raising over $5.2 million collectively. That's real money funding equipment, travel, facilities, and opportunities that might otherwise require budget cuts or program reductions.

Athletic directors appreciate how the model unites entire departments. When all sports teams compete simultaneously during the same hour, it creates a rare moment of whole-program energy. Cross-country runners cheer for volleyball players, swimmers track soccer team progress, and everyone celebrates together.

The compressed timeframe also respects donor fatigue. Supporters receive one focused ask instead of multiple requests spread across weeks. They can respond immediately, see real-time impact on the leaderboards, and feel part of a larger team effort.

Schools are seeing the format change athlete attitudes toward fundraising. Instead of dreading it as a distraction, players approach their hour with the same competitive intensity they bring to competition. Some teams develop strategies, hold practice sessions, and analyze their approach like any other performance challenge.

The results speak for themselves: an average of $349.52 per athlete across all participating schools proves the model works for programs of different sizes and resources.

College athletics just found a way to make fundraising feel less like a burden and more like what these students do best: compete, win, and celebrate together.