Fresno State Athletics
Latest Fresno State APR Report Shows Improvement
12/30/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 30, 2005
FRESNO - The Fresno State athletic department received some good news this week from the NCAA when the latest Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores were reported.
The APR is a one-year snapshot reflecting eligibility and retention of scholarship student-athletes for each sport. The most recent data reflects the 2004-05 academic year.
Fresno State's football APR score for 2004-05, which already ranked first in the WAC, improved by 21 points to 960, up from the 939 score that was reported in February. The previous score was for the 2003-04 academic year ranked fourth-best among schools in the western United States. Of schools in the Pac-10, Western Athletic and Mountain West conferences, only Stanford, Air Force and Utah had a higher APR score for the 2003-04 year.
"We are very proud of the academic progress we've made," said head coach Pat Hill. "I feel our program is as competitive both academically and athletically as any in the nation. We have gone to seven straight bowl games and our APR score ranks in the top 10 in the nation. That's a great accomplishment by our team and our staff."
Of the teams competing in 2005 bowl games, Boston College (978) and Fresno State (960) had the two highest APR scores for football programs that have been in seven consecutive bowl games.
Additionally, the Bulldog basketball team showed vast improvement from its 2003-04 initial score of 611, improving 207 points to 818. The Bulldogs are still below the NCAA standard of 925 in men's basketball. Since the APR will eventually reflect four academic years, it will take the present basketball coaching staff some time to overcome the influence of the 2003-04 score.
The reports include aggregate APR data for comparative purposes, including by-sport APR averages for all of Division I and for each subdivision. A four-year aggregate scored will eventually become the standard. Presently the aggregate data includes only two years (2003-04 and 2004-05).
Teams must reach an aggregate APR score of 925, or they may be subject to a contemporaneous penalty. An APR of 925 equates to a 50 percent graduation rate. The Bulldog football team scored significantly higher than the national average of 921 for 2003-04.
"Based on this most recent information, we are pleased with the progress that has been made over the last year," said Betsy Mosher, Senior Associate Athletics Director for Compliance and Program Integrity. "These figures are a one-year snap shot of the program and if we can continue to see such improvement annually, all of our programs will see improvements in the graduation rates. Ultimately, we would like to reach a level where Fresno State would be eligible for NCAA academic incentives for improvement and consistency."
APR Scores of 2005 College Football Bowl Teams
1. Navy: 992
2. Rutgers: 980
3. Boston College: 978
4. Virginia: 972
5. Northwestern: 971
6. Southern Miss: 967
7. South Florida: 965
8. Auburn: 963
9. Fresno State: 960
Memphis: 960
10. Louisville: 950
11. Iowa: 949
Michigan: 949
13. Florida State: 948
14. Miami (Fla.): 946
15. TCU: 945
16. Virginia Tech: 944
17. Tulsa: 943
18. Florida: 942
Georgia Tech: 942
Clemson: 942
21. Iowa State: 938
West Virginia: 938
23. Colorado: 936
24. NC State: 935
25. Notre Dame: 934
Texas: 934
Colorado State: 934
28. Georgia: 930
29. Utah: 929
Oklahoma: 929
Nebraska: 929
32. Penn State: 928
33. South Carolina: 924
Cal: 924
35. Minnesota: 923
LSU: 923
Akron: 923
38. Boise State: 922
39. UTEP: 921
40. BYU: 920
41. Texas Tech: 919
42. Wisconsin: 916
43. Arkansas State: 912
44. USC: 910
45. Kansas: 899
46. Oregon: 893
Houston: 893
48. Ohio State: 892
Nevada: 892
50. UCLA: 890
51. Arizona State: 887
52. Alabama: 886
53. UCF: 880
54. Toledo: 864
More information about the APR is available on the NCAA website: www.ncaa.org.
