I heard some talk of this on the radio this morning. Isn't this what kept UConn out of March Madness this year or am I thinking of someone else? Also heard that Tennessee wouldn't have been Bowl eligible even if they had enough wins this past year. The article does mention the basketball team needs to pick it up but....whatever. al coppage to the dot kum pasta
Auburn cleared the NCAA benchmark in its most recent Academic Progress Rate numbers released in 21 sports, but there's work to be done for men's basketball to stay above line.
Auburn's men's basketball program scored a 940 multi-year rate, the lowest score among all sports, but its single-year score for 2011-12 was 896.
Auburn feels confident it will maintain a score above the NCAA's multi-year benchmark of 930 in 2014 and beyond. In fact, Auburn's in-house goal for all programs is a score of 950 or above and 11 of 21 teams achieved perfect scores of 1,000 for the single-year rate in 2011-12.
Basketball was dealt an academic blow in the 2011-12 season following the early departures of five players, including three dismissals (Josh Langord, Cedrick McAfee and Varez Ward).
Three players have left the program during the 2013 offseason, but do so in good standing and the seniors on the team are expected to improve the academic numbers.
"A year from now when we're talking about 2012-13, you'll see the impact is not as traumatic," said Gary Waters, senior associate athletics director for academic support.
Auburn's multi-year score has increased 15 points from the 925 it scored for 2007-11.
If players transfer to another school with a 2.6 GPA or higher, it doesn't hurt Auburn.'s APR. The basketball team recorded a 957 single-year score in 2010-2011.
The APR was introduced by the NCAA 10 years ago to provide a more accurate measurement of eligibility and retention of athletes in each sports. A team with a multi-year score below 930 could face potential penalties, including loss of scholarships and practice. Severe penalties include postseason bans.
RELATED: Auburn's single and multi-year APR scores (PDF)
Eleven Auburn teams posted scores of 980 or higher for the multi-year rate (2008-12), and football scored a 950. The 11 perfect scores for the 2011-12 academic year is a point of pride for Auburn's athletics department.
"I was especially proud of them, but in addition to that I was happy with the football team's 985," Waters said of the single-year score. "That is one we were very pleased with."
The 11 teams scoring perfect scores: men's cross country, men's golf, men's tennis, men's indoor track, men's outdoor track, women's basketball, women's cross country, women's golf, women's gymnastics, women's swimming and women's tennis.
The baseball program recorded the second-lowest APR with a 943, but was still well above the NCAA benchmark.
Teams must score a 900 multi-year APR or maintain a 930 average of the two most recent two years to be eligible for the 2013-14 postseason, which Auburn's basketball program exceeds.
The same standard will be in place when scores for the 2012-13 academic year are released in June 2014.
Auburn Academic Progress Rate (2011-12)
Team
Multi-year APR
Baseball 943
Football 950
Men's basketball 940
Men's cross country 984
Men's golf 990
Men's swimming 961
Men's tennis 957
Men's indoor track 988
Softball 984
Women's basketball 990
Women's cross country 992
Women's golf 984
Women's gymnastics 982
Women's soccer 995
Women's swimming 976
Women's tennis 985
Women's indoor track 966
Women's outdoor track 966
Women's volleyball 945
Women's basketball 990