Terms of Service

The service

The Pate State is the online home of Josh Pate's College Football Show: articles, news, rankings, games, and community features. Citizenship is free. Core coverage stays free.

Your account

You're responsible for your account and what's posted from it. One account per person; no impersonation. We can suspend accounts that break these terms or the community rules published on the site.

Your content

What you write is yours. By posting it here (mailbag questions, ballots, community posts) you give The Pate State a license to display it on the site and, for mailbag submissions, to read and discuss it on the show. Don't post content you don't have the right to share.

Games & contests

Pick'em and bracket competitions are free to play, no purchase necessary, and involve no real-money wagering. Locked picks are final and timestamped. Contest-specific rules are published with each contest and control if they conflict with this page.

Content & liability

Coverage is provided as-is. Projections are opinions, not advice — especially not betting advice. Our editorial and correction practices are described in the Standards page. To the extent the law allows, The Pate State isn't liable for damages arising from use of the site.

Changes

If these terms change materially, the effective date changes and citizens are notified by email before the change applies. Questions → contact the desk.