League Had Seventh-Highest Overall Rating in Division I
SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? In information recently released by the NCAA, Southern Conference institutions showed significant improvements in APR (Academic Progress Rate) calculations, jumping from 13th to seventh nationally out of 31 conferences in the overall APR average.
The league’s overall APR of 978, which is a cumulative score that covers data from the 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08 academic years, improved from an average of 968 in 2006-07.
Among the high points of the analysis is that the league ranks second in women’s basketball with an average APR of 997 (out of 1000), signaling a 22-point jump from 2006-07’s 975.
The SoCon was also highly rated in men’s basketball, ranking fifth nationally with an average of 967, and in football, posting a 951 APR, the fifth-highest average among FCS conferences.
“The SoCon showed improving trends in virtually all of the 32 APR trends released by the NCAA,” said league commissioner John Iamarino. “We’re especially proud of our rankings in women’s basketball, men’s basketball and the overall rank. It is a credit to our student-athletes, their coaches and our athletic administrators.”
Baseball, the fourth sport included in the NCAA’s trends analysis report, also posted significant improvements, jumping 14 points in one year from 949 to 963.
The APR is a term-by-term measure of eligibility, retention and graduation for each scholarship student-athlete. Teams that score below 925 on their four-year rate and have a student leave school academically ineligible can lose up to 10 percent of their scholarships through immediate penalties. Teams can also face historically based penalties for poor academic performance over time.