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OU, UT lag in graduate rates

Rival football programs rank among nation's lowest in latest figures

Thursday - October 4, 2007
By KATE HAIROPOULOS / The Dallas Morning News

Texas and Oklahoma rank poorly in graduating football players, according to figures released Wednesday by the NCAA.

The Longhorns' graduation success rate, which is calculated by the NCAA, was 42 percent. Oklahoma's was 44 percent.

The only Bowl Subdivision (Division I-A) football programs with lower rates than UT are Georgia (41), Arizona (41) and San Jose State (36). Michigan State was below Oklahoma with 43.

The numbers were based on incoming freshmen from 1997 to 2000 graduating within six years. This is the third year the NCAA has released its own data. UT's football program actually improved on a 40 percent rate in the figures released last year. Oklahoma was down from 52 percent.

The average graduation rate of Bowl Subdivision football players was 67 percent, up from 65 percent. Men's basketball was the lowest of all sports at 61 percent, but that's up 2 percentage points from last year.

"Overall, the trend data is up, and it's very heartening," NCAA president Myles Brand said.

"We've seen in the last two years some upward movement. What that's saying is that in the athletic culture, the idea of academic performance ... is taking hold."

Baylor (84%), Nebraska (83%), Texas Tech (79%), Kansas State (73%) and Colorado (68%) were the Big 12 football programs that rated higher than the average. SMU had a GSR of 84.

Texas ranked second-to-last in the Big 12 in men's basketball, with a GSR of 33. Iowa State had the lowest in the league at 17 percent.

The GSR is separate from the Academic Progress Rate, which measures eligibility and retention of athletes to assess penalties.

The graduation rate for Division I athletes was 77 percent, the same as last year. Brand reaffirmed his goal of increasing the figure to 80 percent.

The NCAA touted year-by-year data showing that the GSR rose from 67.6 percent for male athletes who began college in 1995 to 71.5 percent for those who started their studies in 2000.

BIG 12, AREA SCHOOLS

Graduation Success Rates, released Wednesday by the NCAA,
are based on incoming freshmen from 1997 to 2000. Figures for
Big 12 and area colleges in football and men's basketball:


BIG 12

School: Football -- Mens Basketball
Baylor 84% 58%
Colorado 68 55
Iowa State 55 17
Kansas 56 45
Kansas State 73 67
Missouri 60 50
Nebraska 83 47
Oklahoma 44 46
Oklahoma St 64 73
Texas 42% 33%
Texas A&M 62 40
Texas Tech 79 44


AREA SCHOOLS

School: Football -- Mens Basketball
N. Texas 58% 60%
SMU 84% 82%
TCU 69% 35%


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/colleges/topstories/stories/100407dnspogradrates.37747af.html

Amazing. The higher the graduation rate, the lower the win percentage.

Except for NTSU.

DiamondM75 wrote:Amazing. The higher the graduation rate, the lower the win percentage.

Except for NTSU.

And Nebraska. They have an 83% graduation rate and won the Big XII North last year.

perunapower wrote:

DiamondM75 wrote:Amazing. The higher the graduation rate, the lower the win percentage.

Except for NTSU.

And Nebraska. They have an 83% graduation rate and won the Big XII North last year.

Not much else to do in the Cornhusker State than study...and play football...and watch the wheat grow.

as long as their academic progress rating(APR) is fine-this means ZILCH. Last time I looked (2006) it actually was quite high in a year they had low graduation. Its amazing what having players that are actually wanted by the NFL does to your graduation rate.

While I cannot stand the Longhorns, in their defense they actually have players with an opportunity to go pro before graduating, which somewhat affects their graduation rate. Say 4 guys per class go pro early, thats between 15-20 percent of the class every season. This would be an especially large factor for basketball where 1 player leaving early makes a huge portion of the recruiting class.

MustangIcon wrote:While I cannot stand the Longhorns, in their defense they actually have players with an opportunity to go pro before graduating, which somewhat affects their graduation rate. Say 4 guys per class go pro early, thats between 15-20 percent of the class every season. This would be an especially large factor for basketball where 1 player leaving early makes a huge portion of the recruiting class.

I think those leaving early for the pros are factored out are they not? I do not know why I think that but I thought that was the case.

Sorry, posted at the same time. Not trying to pull a Re-Peter Pan on everybody.

MrMustang1965 wrote:

perunapower wrote:

DiamondM75 wrote:Amazing. The higher the graduation rate, the lower the win percentage.

Except for NTSU.

And Nebraska. They have an 83% graduation rate and won the Big XII North last year.

Not much else to do in the Cornhusker State than study...and play football...and watch the wheat grow.

The question really is study what? I'm sure that they have special courses just for the football team with important majors such as Learning to Lift Furniture for Mayflower Moving Van 101 or Topless Bouncer Skills 202!

I agree with Stallion. Who cares? So far, when I stand around the water cooler bragging bout SMU's excellent graduation rate, it just doesn't make up for getting blown out by Aryland State (as well as others). One could suspect that the graduation rate at Harvard, Yale and Dartmouth are all equally as impressive as SMU and Baylor’s. And it means...what?

How does this play into recruiting? Hey young hot recruit, you can play for SMU with a graduation rate of 84% or you can play in front of 90,000+ screaming adoring fans every week. Gee, wonder which one is the most impressive to a 17 year old?

I am proud that SMU has committed itself to high academic standards and has supported its athletes to achieve those standards. I am proud of the caliber of recruits that choose SMU as they have demonstrated the importance of academic success in their future (because lord knows none of them have a future in the NFL). However, all the feel good in the world for our graduation rate doesn’t erase one modicum of disappointment from our two decades of failure on the gridiron.

mrydel wrote:

MustangIcon wrote:While I cannot stand the Longhorns, in their defense they actually have players with an opportunity to go pro before graduating, which somewhat affects their graduation rate. Say 4 guys per class go pro early, thats between 15-20 percent of the class every season. This would be an especially large factor for basketball where 1 player leaving early makes a huge portion of the recruiting class.

I think those leaving early for the pros are factored out are they not? I do not know why I think that but I thought that was the case.

No. Leaving to go pro does not exempt the player from the graduation APR. Now coaches have to be careful not to recruit too many potential pro players to keep them from lowering the APR and thus costing scholarships in the future.

Would it be fair to exempt a player that enters the pro's early? Talk amoungst yourselves.

never mind

Stallion wrote:Its amazing what having players that are actually wanted by the NFL does to your graduation rate.

It's also amazing what having players that are actually wanted by the FBI does to your graduation rate.

MrMustang1965 wrote:

Stallion wrote:Its amazing what having players that are actually wanted by the NFL does to your graduation rate.

It's also amazing what having players that are actually wanted by the FBI does to your graduation rate.

A+

Would it be so bad to have a slightly lower graduation rate but get to go to a bowl game every year?