NEW ORLEANS – After five teams claimed a combined seven Sun Belt regular-season division and tournament championships, and with 13 sport programs in all among the top half of the league standings, the University of South Alabama earned the Vic Bubas Cup presented annually to the top all-around program in the conference.
It marks the fifth time in the last seven years — and league-record 15th occasion overall — that the Jaguars have received the trophy named after the conference's first commissioner. South Alabama Athletics recorded a program-record 131 points in the competition in 2020-21, 14 more than runner-up Louisiana.
"The Bubas Cup is something we truly value and work toward every single day," Jag Director of Athletics Joel Erdmann said. "It can only be won with the unwavering commitment of every sport program and those that surround those programs. The challenges of COVID make this year's achievement even more memorable. Every person in the process had to make ongoing conscious decisions based on the well-being of the team and those we serve. For that we should all be thankful and proud."
The Jaguars began the academic year by winning two of the conference's six sports in the fall, with the soccer team taking the tournament title after earning the top seed in the East Division during the regular season and men's cross country placing five individuals among the top 15 to best Appalachian State by a 16-point margin. In the spring, the Jag men's tennis team won its third consecutive conference tournament to advance to an NCAA Regional, with the baseball program doing the same after first claiming the regular-season East Division crown.
USA's women's tennis and men's and women's outdoor track and field squads placed second at their conference championship events, while the women's cross country program came in third at the league meet in the fall as well. Other programs finishing in the top half of the Sun Belt standings included men's basketball, softball, women's golf, and men's and women's indoor track and field.
A total of 74 Jaguar student-athletes garnered all-Sun Belt recognition during the 2020-21 season, the most for the department since 78 individuals were honored in 2015-16.
"Congratulations to South Alabama. Winning the Bubbas Cup acknowledges their comprehensive excellence during the 2020-21 academic year," said Sun Belt Conference Commissioner Keith Gill. "The award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of South Alabama's student-athletes, coaches, staff and university leadership."
For sports that have a regular season conference schedule, Vic Bubas Cup points are awarded based strictly on regular season finish, while for those sports that do not have a regular season league schedule points are awarded based on each program's finish at the league championship. Total points numbers are awarded based on the number of schools sponsoring the sport, and institutions not sponsoring a sport do not receive points in that sport. Also, institutions tying for positions split the combined points of their positions. For sports that have both a regular season schedule and a conference tournament, one additional point is awarded to the winner of the conference tournament while for sports with divisions, the conference records of all teams are ranked and points are awarded regardless of divisional finish.
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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