University of Louisville Entrepreneurs Named 'Best in the World'

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May 10, 2011, 12:40 ET

LOUISVILLE, Ky., May 10, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- TNG Pharmaceuticals, a new business developed by MBA students at the University of Louisville Forcht Center for Entrepreneurship, is No. 1 in the world after winning the 2011 Global Championship at Venture Labs Investment Competition (VLIC), the "Super Bowl" of business plan competitions.

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The $135,000 prize comes on the heels of Louisville's three other grand prize wins in national business plan competitions, including $640,000 at Rice University, the largest and richest in the world.

Formerly known as Moot Corp, the Global Venture Labs competition May 6-7 featured 40 concepts developed by the world's finest entrepreneurship programs. Now in its 28th year, the event is hosted by the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. Teams must win another national competition or receive a special invitation to participate. Although Louisville placed two teams in the 2009 competition 'final four' and two more last year, it had never won the top prize.

"It's an extraordinary achievement—a once in a lifetime accomplishment," said Van G. H. Clouse, UofL's Cobb Family Professor of Entrepreneurship and Forcht Center director. "What these students have done is truly remarkable, for their futures, our program, this university and our community."

TNG's product is FlyVax, a patented vaccine designed to neutralize parasitic horn flies, an agricultural pest that causes cattle farmers more than $1 billion a year in losses due to lower beef and milk production. The company is working to develop the product with Auburn University agricultural research scientists. The team includes CEO Jenny Corbin, COO Larry Horn, Max Brudner, Cory Long and Terry Tate. Team advisors are Clouse and Entrepreneur in Residence Suzanne Bergmeister.

Valued at $135,000, the VLIC prize includes cash, consulting and mentoring services, national advertising and a visit to the NASDAQ OMX Stock Market to ring the opening bell on June 3. The win pushed the value of TNG's competition prize awards to $799,350.

All five team members will complete the two-year Forcht Center Entrepreneurship MBA program next week and continue pursuit of venture capital to launch the business. UofL's Forcht Center offers a complete suite of experiences in entrepreneurship that prepare students to launch new ventures or bring innovative thinking to existing corporate environments.

For more information, see www.business.louisville.edu/eship or contact Tom Peterson at 502-608-2215 or [email protected]

SOURCE University of Louisville