May 3, 2017
The University of South Carolina had seven of its athletic programs that were recognized today by the NCAA for its outstanding academic achievements.
Based on their most recent multiyear Academic Progress Rates, these teams have earned NCAA Public Recognition Awards for posting scores in the top 10 percent of their sport. The APR is an annual scoreboard of academic achievement calculated for all Division I Sports Teams.
These awards are based on APR numbers that represent the combination of scores from the 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16 academic years.
The seven South Carolina programs honored this year for multi-year achievement:
• Baseball
• Men’s Soccer
• Men’s Tennis
• Women’s Basketball
• Women’s Swimming & Diving
• Women’s Tennis
• Volleyball
“Our student-athletes work hard in the classroom and in their sports,” said Athletics Director Ray Tanner. “They want to succeed in every phase of their intercollegiate experience and we have the staff to help them do that. I am very proud of our successes in the classroom. Maria Hickman and her staff at the Dodie Anderson Academic Enrichment Center help our student-athletes lay the ground work for success academically.”
The seven public recognition awards are the most in USC school history, in the 12-year-old program.
These seven awards are tied for the most in the SEC with Vanderbilt and leads Alabama (5), Tennessee (5), Auburn (4), Florida (4), Kentucky (4), LSU (4), Missouri (4), Georgia (3), Ole Miss (2), Texas A&M (2), Arkansas (1) and Mississippi State (1).
Though the academic year is still ongoing and many NCAA championships yet to take place, the Gamecocks women’s basketball program is one of seven national champions thus far this year to earn this public recognition for academic achievements.
APR scores for all Division I teams will be released May 10. The APR measures eligibility, graduation and retention each semester or academic term and provides a clear picture of the academic performance for each team in every sport. All teams must meet an academic threshold of 930 to qualify for the postseason and can face penalties for continued low academic performance.
The APR scores are the latest achievements for USC student-athletes in the classroom. The Fall 2016 semester marked the 20th-consecutive semester in which Gamecock student-athletes have combined for a GPA above 3.0 (Spring 2017 scores TBA). South Carolina led the SEC by placing 381 student-athletes on the SEC’s honor rolls during the last completed academic year (2015-16).
