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Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Auburn makes APR grade in nearly every sport

The NCAA released its annual Academic Progress Rate report Wednesday, and none of Auburn's three major sports — football, men's basketball and baseball — received penalties.

Nearly every Auburn sport made the requisite 925 APR score over a four-year academic period to avoid sanctions.

The exception was the men's indoor and outdoor track teams, which, despite a strong 2008-09 APR score, had a four-year score of 914. Auburn preemptively absorbed the .5 scholarship reduction last year, a school spokesman said.

The NCAA has calculated APR every year since 2005, using academic data for a four-year period to assess a team's ongoing performance in the classroom.

Teams can earn two points per student-athlete, one for retaining an athlete in school and another for that athlete making progress toward a degree. A percentage is calculated on earned points out of total possible points. The decimal figure is then multiplied by 1,000 for a final score.

Teams that fail to achieve a cumulative score of 925 are subject to penalties that can become harsher for repeat offenders. Penalties include public warnings, reductions in scholarships and recruiting opportunities and eventually postseason bans.

Auburn's football team had a four-year score of 935, a number that is down 14 points from last year. The Tigers' 2008-09 APR was 915. A school spokesman attributed the lower score to roster attrition associated with that year's coaching change from Tommy Tuberville to Gene Chizik.

Men's basketball had a four-year score of 916, below the 925 threshold. The spokesman said the Tigers were not penalized because they did not have any "0-for-2" candidates, meaning players who were not eligible and not retained.

Men's cross country, which had a score of 917, was not penalized because of its small squad size.

All 11 of Auburn's women's teams had an APR higher than 925. The highest score was 991 by women's basketball and women's golf.

The women's basketball team was recognized last month for being in the top 10 percentile of all teams in their sport. It was one of 20 SEC teams recognized by the NCAA.

The women's golf and women's soccer teams had perfect scores for the 2008-09 academic year.

Here are all the scores by sport for the last four academic years: 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09.

Men's sports
  • Baseball: 932
  • Basketball: 916
  • Cross country: 917*
  • Football: 935
  • Golf: 954
  • Swimming: 925
  • Tennis: 958
  • Indoor track: 914
  • Outdoor track: 914
Women's sports
  • Basketball: 991
  • Cross country: 989
  • Golf: 991
  • Gymnastics: 972
  • Soccer: 984
  • Softball: 966
  • Swimming: 957
  • Tennis: 940
  • Indoor track: 940
  • Outdoor track: 939
  • Volleyball: 941
* -- not penalized because of squad size

Click here for a PDF with all of Auburn's scores.

Here are the APRs of the rest of the SEC's football teams. Figures are for a four-year period:
  • Vanderbilt: 975
  • Georgia: 973
  • Florida: 971
  • LSU: 965
  • Alabama: 957
  • Kentucky: 951
  • Tennessee: 944
  • Mississippi State: 939
  • South Carolina: 938
  • Auburn: 935
  • Arkansas: 930
  • Ole Miss: 921

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