UMass hits highs in most recent release of NCAA Academic Progress Rate

While the Minutemen have shown growth, ten men's basketball programs, including UConn, were hit with postseason bans for 2012-13.

The University of Massachusetts set school highs in its three "major sports" (football, men's basketball and men's ice hockey) in the NCAA's most recent release of its Academic Progress Rate.

Each year, the NCAA tracks the academic standing of Division I institutions through what it calls the Academic Progress Rate. The numbers released Wednesday are from the 2010-11 academic year.

From the NCAA website, this is how the APR is calculated (the full page is here):

Each student-athlete receiving athletically related financial aid earns one retention point for staying in school and one eligibility point for being academically eligible. A team’s total points are divided by points possible and then multiplied by one thousand to equal the team’s Academic Progress Rate score.

For example:

A Division I Football Bowl Subdivision team awards the full complement of 85 grants-in-aid. If 80 student-athletes remain in school and academically eligible, three remain in school but are academically ineligible and two drop out academically ineligible, the team earns 163 of 170 possible points for that term. Divide 163 by 170 and multiply by 1,000 to determine that the team’s Academic Progress Rate for that term is 959.

In 2011, the NCAA stiffened the penalties for not meeting its APR standards. Again, from the NCAA site:

Teams that score below 925 and have a student-athlete who both failed academically and left school can lose scholarships (up to 10 percent of their scholarships each year) under the immediate penalty structure.

Teams with Academic Progress Rates below 900 face additional sanctions, increasing in severity for each consecutive year the team fails to meet the standard.

• Year 1: a public warning letter for poor performance


• Year 2: restrictions on scholarships and practice time


• Year 3: loss of postseason competition for the team (such as a bowl game or the men’s basketball tournament)


• Year 4: restricted membership status for an institution. The school’s entire athletics program is penalized and will not be considered a part of Division I

The most high-profile program to suffer the wrath of these penalties is UConn men's basketball, which faces a postseason ban for 2012-13. Joining them on the sidelines during March Madness will be Cal State-Bakersfield, Jacksonville State, Mississppi Valley State, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, California-Riverside, North Carolina-Wilmington and Toledo.

I've pulled some relevant data from the report for UMass. It's below for your viewing pleasure. To view the reports yourself, visit this link. One thing to remember: APR only takes into account athletes who receive athletically related financial aid (read: scholarships).

2010-11 UMass (all sports)
Softball: 1000
Women's Soccer: 993
Men's Outdoor Track: 993
Field Hockey: 993
Women's Tennis: 992
Men's Indoor Track: 992
Women's Outdoor Track: 989
Women's Cross Country: 989
Men's Ice Hockey: 988
Baseball: 986
Women's Rowing: 985
Women's Swimming: 981
Women's Indoor Track: 980
Women's Lacrosse: 980
Men's Lacrosse: 976
Men's Soccer: 970
Women's Basketball: 969
Men's Cross Country: 967
Men's Swimming: 951
Men's Basketball: 949
Football: 935

UMass Men's Basketball Since 2004-05:

• 2004-05: 894


• 2005-06: 920


• 2006-07: 903


• 2007-08: 931


• 2008-09: 930


• 2009-10: 928


• 2010-11: 949

2010-11 Atlantic 10 Basketball:

1. Richmond: 995


2. Dayton: 990


3. Temple: 980


4. La Salle: 969


5. George Washington 966


6. Xavier: 965


7. Duquesne: 956


8. Rhode Island: 952


9. UMass: 949


10. St. Joseph's: 949


11. Charlotte: 940


12. Fordham: 933


13. St. Bonaventure: 929


14. St. Louis: 923

UMass Football Since 2004-05:

• 2004-05: 918


• 2005-06: 927


• 2006-07: 925


• 2007-08: 927


• 2008-09: 927


• 2009-10: 927


• 2010-11: 935

MAC Football 2010-11:

1. Northern Illinois: 987


2. Miami (Ohio): 967


3. Toledo: 960


4. Temple: 959


5. Western Michigan: 954


6. Bowling Green: 951


7. Ohio: 949


8. Ball State: 946


9. Central Michigan: 941


10. Kent State: 935


11. Eastern Michigan: 935


12. Akron: 933


13. Buffalo: 923

CAA Football 2010-11:

1. New Hampshire: 981


2. Maine: 977


3. William and Mary: 976


4. Villanova: 966


5. Richmond: 962


6. Towson: 948


7. Rhode Island: 944


8. Delaware: 939


9. James Madison: 939


10. UMass: 935


11. Old Dominion: 917

UMass Men's Hockey Since 2004-05:

• 2004-05: 971


• 2005-06: 951


• 2006-07: 943


• 2007-08: 958


• 2008-09: 950


• 2009-10: 968


• 2010-11: 988

2010-11 Hockey East Men

1. New Hampshire: 1,000


2. Boston University: 1,000


3. Maine: 997


4. UMass: 988


5. Merrimack: 981


6. Northeastern: 977


7. UMass-Lowell: 976


8. Providence: 974


9. Vermont: 970


10. Boston College: 969