INDIANAPOLIS – In the most recent NCAA Academic Progress Rates released on Wednesday, the University of South Alabama Department of Athletics had nine of 15 sport programs record a perfect score in 2016-17.
Jaguar teams with a score of 1,000 last season include baseball, men's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf, men's tennis, women's track and field and volleyball. USA's men's track and field squad also topped the Sun Belt Conference with a 985 mark as all but one department program posted a score above 960 for the academic year.
The Jags' 985 Multi-Year APR figure is also the best in the conference, with the men's and women's cross country and men's golf teams scoring 1,000 over the four-year span including the 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 academic years. Women's and men's track and field pace the Sun Belt as well in the multi-year report with scores of 998 and 992, respectively, with baseball (988) and men's basketball (985) standing second in the conference, men's tennis (993) third and football also among the top half of SBC institutions.
"Our student-athletes continue to perform at a high level in the classroom year after year, as can be seen in both the single year and multi-year APR data reports," Jason Kelly, South Alabama Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Academic Services, stated. "This is yet again a testament to the hard work of our student-athletes as well our coaches and support staff who are committed to providing a culture that leads to success not only on the student's playing surface, but most importantly, in the classroom."
In the classroom during the 2016-17 campaign, South had a record-tying 171 student-athletes earn Sun Belt academic recognition with 93 named to the Commissioner's List and another 78 making the Academic Honor Roll. A total of 61 individuals garnered all-league honors in competition as well, with five all-region selections and four going on to make an All-America team.
The Jaguars also won the Vic Bubas Cup, presented to the Sun Belt school with the best all-around performance in competition, for the third year in a row in '16-17, with 12 sport programs placing among the top half of the league standings and both baseball and soccer advancing to the NCAA Tournament.
Last week, four Jaguar programs — men's and women's cross country, men's golf and women's track and field — received NCAA Public Recognition Awards for being ranked among the top 10 percent of their sport in the country.
The APR is an annual scorecard of academic achievement that 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.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to the South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give
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