Terms
Eleven things worth knowing before you use Hometown Line, and nothing you could not have guessed from the rest of the site.
Version 2026-10-06. When these change in substance, you are asked to agree again.
1What you do here: Forecasting Distributed Algorithmic Outcomes
What a player does here is formally denominated Forecasting Distributed Algorithmic Outcomes: a forecast of a real game's result, set against the model's algorithmic line, made alongside the forecasts of every other player, and scored only against a result with a named source. It is a contest of skill and prediction. It is not sports wagering: no money is staked, nothing is paid out, units have no monetary value, there are no prizes, and no money changes hands.
2This is a simulation, not a betting product
The schools are real. A result is shown only where its source is named beside it. Where a state association publishes its schedule, the games still to come are that schedule, credited to it; elsewhere they are generated so the model has something to predict, and no generated game is ever shown as a result. Every rating and line is the model’s. Units cannot be bought, cashed, given or sent to anyone, or redeemed, there are no prizes of any kind, and nothing in the game accepts money. Sponsors buy a place on the page — “Presented by” and “Sponsor” name a paid placement, marked as such and never beside a prediction — and they never fund a prize. The weekly contest ranks picks already made and ends in a title, nothing else. The Supporter extras (clause 10) are software beside the game and never anything in it. League organisers and sponsors may not attach prizes, entry fees, collections or side wagers to any standing here, on this site or off it; a league found doing so is closed. League links and invites may expire or be limited to a number of uses chosen by the organiser.
3Nothing here is betting advice
Predictions are model output, published so the model can be argued with. They are not offers, solicitations or advice to act on. Wagering on high school sport is prohibited or restricted in most jurisdictions, and this site does not facilitate it — how that is enforced is documented.
4No guarantee of anything
The site is provided as it is. It may be wrong, unavailable, reset, or withdrawn. Accounts and their history may be deleted without notice — they hold a score, not an asset, and nothing of value is lost when one goes. If an account ever has paid access to the Supporter extras, it will not be deleted without notice, and any unused paid period will be refunded.
5For anyone 13 and older
This is a game about high school football, and an account is a display name, usually a password, and nothing that identifies you; the privacy page lists everything stored. Accounts are for people 13 and older: everyone who opens one confirms at sign-up that they are at least 13, and anyone under 18 that a parent or guardian knows they play. No one under 13 may open an account, and one found to belong to a child under 13 is deleted. A parent or guardian who believes a child under 13 has an account can tell us on the contact page, and it will be deleted. Players under 18 can read game threads but not post in them, and are shown as “Hometown fan” on public boards. Scores and predictions stay open to read without one, and nothing about anyone of any age is collected beyond what that page lists.
6What you post
A game thread is public. Talk about teams, not students: nothing that names, describes or pictures a player is allowed, and it is removed when seen. Also not allowed, anywhere on the site: harassment, hate, threats, spam, pretending to be someone else, anyone’s personal details, and any offer to bet on a game. Three reports from three households hide a post; a moderator may remove any post without notice, and an account that keeps breaking these rules may be suspended or closed. What you post stays yours; posting it lets us show it on this site and in its share cards, and you can ask for it to be taken down. Posts are about teams: a post that names a player or gives a jersey number is turned away. A post taken down after reports, or by Hometown Line, is reviewed before it can come back. Reports in a league’s thread go to Hometown Line as well as the organiser. You may block another player. Blocking hides their posts from you and stops them replying to yours; it does not change any league standings, and they are not notified. Reports are reviewed by Hometown Line. A post reported as naming or describing a student may be hidden immediately while it is reviewed. We may warn, hide, remove, or suspend posting for a period or permanently; suspension does not affect picks or leagues. You may ask once for any decision to be reviewed again.
7Links and facts you send in
A stream link is taken only when it points to a known streaming service — the NFHS Network, YouTube, Facebook, Hudl, Vimeo or Twitch, each the trademark of its owner, none connected to this site — and a reviewer may check or remove it. Team Desk submissions come from school staff holding a key, are team-level only (counts and a head coach, never a student), and may be edited or removed; a key can be withdrawn at any time.
8Getting back in
There is no email. A password is optional when you save your first pick; without one, the account lives in the browser that made it, so adding a password is the way to keep it. When you set or change a password you are shown a recovery code once; it is the only way to reset a forgotten password, and an account whose code is lost cannot be recovered.
9Not affiliated with anyone
Real school names appear because they are public facts. No school, district, athletic association or other organisation endorses, sponsors or is connected to this project. Where a state association or publication is named beside a score or a schedule, that is a credit to the source it came from, not a sign that it endorses or works with this site. School logos are not used, because a crest is a trademark.
10Supporter extras are software, never play
Some features sit beside the game rather than in it: write-ups told like a friend would, Your Friday pinned to the top of the scoreboard, a team’s season drawn as one line, and Season Outlook. This season every one of them is free for everyone. Season Outlook is for reading only: it shows the model’s win chance and projected margin for games further out, and nothing in it can be picked. Every game’s model line and picks open on the same day for every player, when its week comes up; the board covers this week and next. If these extras are ever offered for a fee, the price, how renewal works, how to cancel and the refund terms will be published on this page, and agreed to at checkout, before any charge is made. Paying for them would buy nothing in the game: no units, no extra picks, no earlier picks, no better line and no place in any standing that a free account does not get.
11The legal bits, in plain words
To the extent the law allows, the site is used at your own risk, and because nothing here is paid for, our total responsibility to anyone for anything that goes wrong with it is limited to what the law requires and no more. You agree not to use the site to break the law or to harm anyone, and to take responsibility if you do. Scores and schedules belong to the sources credited beside them; if you believe something here uses your work without permission, say so on the contact page and it will be looked at and, where right, removed. If you are under 18, a parent or guardian knowing you play is part of agreeing to these terms. If any line here can’t be enforced, the rest still stands.
If you represent a school or association and want your name removed, say so on the contact page and it will be removed. No argument, no process.