May 6, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - UCF continues to show improvement in its Academic Progress Rate (APR) with the school's teams averaging a 962 in the NCAA's annual report which was issued this afternoon. These crucial rankings, first compiled in 2004, are a large part of NCAA President Dr. Miles Brand's comprehensive academic reform initiative to better assess the academic standards nationwide and the Knights have continued to excel.
Of the 12 Floridian schools which have competed at the Division I level annually since 2004, UCF's 962 average multi-year APR ranks third trailing only Miami and Florida. UCF's 962 average placed it sixth overall in Conference USA and third amongst public schools, narrowly trailing Marshall and Memphis in that regards.
Bolstering the school's lofty multi-year average was an exemplary 2007-08 academic year which saw five different UCF teams (31-percent) record a perfect score of 1000. Likewise, a full 50-percent (eight of 16) of Knight teams had an APR score of 980 or higher for the 2007-08 academic year. In past year alone, UCF's APR average per sport was 969.
"This is very exciting news to see UCF have all of our sports meet the APR requirements and, in many cases, significantly exceed them," UCF Director of Athletics Keith Tribble said. "It is a testament to the high caliber of student-athletes we have here at UCF, the coaches who recruited them and the academic services staff who enhance their experiences in the classroom. Our academic success is something that we all take great pride in and this is another proud day for us at UCF."
UCF has never been penalized for poor APR standings, a problem which beset 218 teams at 123 schools in 2008. The APR is a matter taken extremely seriously by the NCAA as teams that score below a multi-year 925 and have a student leave school academically ineligible can lose up to 10 percent of their scholarships.
Although it is not included in the NCAA's public report which only looks at multi-year averages, the five UCF teams which received a perfect score of 1000 for the 2007-08 academic year are baseball, women's basketball, women's golf, women's soccer and women's tennis.
By having all of its individual team multi-year scores at 925 or higher, UCF has put itself in good company. Of the 12 Floridian schools which qualify, UCF joins Florida, Florida State, Miami and Stetson as schools to have all of its teams hold a 925 multi-year average or better. UCF is one of 38 public Football Bowl Subdivision schools nationwide which can make this claim. UCF is one of five Conference USA schools which has achieved this goal. The league excelled here, tying for fourth nationally behind only the ACC's nine, Big Ten's seven and Pac-10's six in terms of schools where every team stands at 925 or better.
Eight UCF squads' multi-year APRs exceeded their sport's national average for public schools in today's release with one (women's indoor track and field) matching the national average.
The APR provides a real-time "snapshot" of a team's academic success each semester by looking at current academic progress of every student-athlete. The APR includes eligibility, retention, and graduation as factors in the rate calculation and provides a much clearer picture of the current academic culture in each sport.
The APR is the fulcrum upon which the entire academic-reform structure rests. Developed as a more real-time assessment of teams' academic performance than the six-year graduation-rate calculation provides, the APR awards two points each term to student-athletes who meet academic-eligibility standards and who remain with the institution. A team's APR is the total points earned by the team at a given time divided by the total points possible.
The Knights have shown consistent and dramatic improvement in two prominent sports.
The UCF football team, under head coach George O'Leary's mindful academic watch has improved from a 903 in the 2006 release to a 928 in 2007, a 938 in 2008 and now a 960 in 2009, reflecting O'Leary's heavy emphasis on academics. The UCF baseball team, meanwhile, has seen its scores consistently improve every year from 2006-09, going from a 921 to its current 950. UCF's perfect score of 1000 in baseball is particularly impressive as the national average for baseball, a 946, is amongst the lowest of any sport nationwide.
The C-USA champion women's basketball team's 978 APR led all 12 Florida schools and ranked third in the league. The Knight rowing team had the highest APR amongst C-USA schools at 983. In addition to winning the league title on the course, UCF's men's golf team was second in the league for APR as well at 982.
Not all of the credit for this tremendous success is due to those who sit in the classrooms and work behind the scenes for UCF Athletics. None of this could have ever been possible without the generosity of UCF's many supporters through their donations to the Golden Knights Club. Every year the GKC collects valuable funds which help advance the academic success of UCF's student-athletes. For more information on the GKC and how you can help continue this remarkable academic success, please call (407) 823-2086, email goldenknightsclub@athletics.ucf.edu, or check out the GKC section at UCFAthletics.com.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.