Mack Brown--college football's best CEO--"Graduate?! Huh?!"

[n8v_ndn]

Texas football trails Big 12 in graduation rate
Texas graduation rate lowest in league
By John Maher

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF


Thursday, September 28, 2006

The University of Texas' defending national champion football team trails the rest of the Big 12 when it comes to graduation rates, according to NCAA data released Wednesday.

Texas had a graduation success rate of 40 percent in football. No other Big 12 school had a rate lower than 50 percent for its football team.

"They're never as high as you want them to be. . . . We're making progress," Texas men's athletic director DeLoss Dodds said.

The Texas women's basketball team, meanwhile, was behind only Nebraska in that measure, scoring a 93.

The Texas men's basketball and baseball teams finished eighth and seventh, respectively, in the league and fell well short of the 80 percent graduation success rate that NCAA president Myles Brand is shooting for.

According to NCAA figures, the graduation success rate for Division I athletes increased from 76 percent to 77 percent in the past year.

"Overall, we're very encouraged," said Brand. "Academic reforms are taking hold."

The GSR reflects rates for students who entered college from 1996 to 1999 and graduated within six years. The two-year-old measure accounts for students who left in good academic standing and for those who transferred in. The older, required federal graduation rates do neither and miss about 35 percent of student-athletes, according to NCAA officials.

There are no penalties associated with the graduation success rate, although teams with a graduation rate of less than 60 percent may run afoul of other reform measures.

"It's a dashboard indicator," Walter Harrison said of the GSR. He is chair of the NCAA Executive Committee and one of the leaders of the academic reform movement. Harrison said the numbers could be used by athletic directors to warn of a possible problem.

Dodds characterized some of the teams' marks as good, some average and some not so good. He said the football rates still reflect classes that were in the transition period between former coach John Mackovic and current coach Mack Brown.

As for baseball and basketball Dodds said, "You're getting into kids leaving for the pros. . . . It will be hard for us to ever do great in those."

Iowa State men's basketball team had by far the lowest GSR in the league, a 12.

[email protected]; 445-3956


How Big 12 teams rank in graduation rates

Ranking Big 12 teams, based on the new graduation success rate and federally required graduation rates. The measure accounts for transfers and for athletes who leave in good academic standing.


FOOTBALL

School GSR Fed rate

Nebraska 88 75

Baylor 85 68

Kansas St. 76 63

Texas Tech 73 63

Colorado 68 62

Oklahoma St. 65 67

Texas A&M 63 53

Missouri 53 45

Iowa St. 52 58

Oklahoma 52 44

Kansas 51 48

Texas 40 29


MEN'S BASKETBALL

School GSR rate

Kansas State 88 44

Baylor 67 44

Missouri 60 45

Nebraska 56 30

Texas Tech 55 38

Colorado 50 31

Kansas 45 40

Texas 44 30

Oklahoma 41 25

Texas A&M 40 15

Oklahoma St. 31 13

Iowa State 12 9


BASEBALL

School GSR rate

Baylor 87 45

Iowa State 61 42

Texas Tech 60 21

Oklahoma 58 37

Kansas 55 41

Nebraska 51 31

Texas 51 26

Missouri 50 33

Kansas State 50 24

Texas A&M 46 26

Oklahoma State 44 19


WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

School GSR rate

Nebraska 100 60

Texas 93 83

Baylor 92 82

Colorado 92 60

Kansas St. 89 67

Oklahoma St. 85 80

Missouri 82 54

Texas Tech 80 58

Oklahoma 79 69

Iowa St. 78 67

Kansas 69 77

Texas A&M 63 86

[BIG_IKE]

This data is so old it almost doesnt matter...Wack Clown could care less if they graduate, as long as he gets his 4 years of football out of them.

Not to defend the coaches...but say you have an EXTREMELY talented player that can stay eligible for four years, and you have a so-so talented player thats really into school.....who are you gonna give a scholarship to?

The answer is the difference from being Air Force and being a powerhouse. If someone does not graduate it's because they as an individual dont handle their business. You can't blame the programs. I know too many guys who graduate before their eligibility is up because they handle business..

I wonder if this thing takes into account all the Sooners that went to the NFL.
it's almost like if your a really good team with lots of pro prosepects in a sport it will hurt your graduation rate. Guys that dont put people in the leagues have nothing to do but finish school after eligibility.

[Tear Down This Wall]

Guys, don't start this crap. The NCAA graduation rates compilation are a joke. If a guy transferes out or is drafted into the NFL, he counts against your numbers. It's the biggest damn statistical lie going in sports.

We've been on the other side of this thing, so don't throw stones. The NCAA needs to let guys transfer be put on the record of the school they ultimately transfer to. Currently, when they transfer no one gets credit for their graduation; but the team who originally signed them gets docked. They also need to take into account that the guys who go into the NFL usually are preparing for the draft their final semesters and most eventually finish years later.

Take Emmit Smith. He left Florida early, but kept going to class in the off-seasons while he was with Dallas. He eventually did graduate, but not with the NCAA's ridiculous time period. So, Florida's graduation rate for Smith's incoming class was lowered just becuase he was good enough to go to the NFL. It's dumb.

They need to just count the guys who stick with it and make exceptions for guys in the pros. Stupid.

[mrowl]

the formula is crap. Don't read much into it.

[Herr Scholz]

Yeah, those figures get severely skewed by transfers. It's happened to both of our schools during coaching changes.


UT senior associate athletic director Nick Voinis said the Longhorns' graduation rate is low in part because of former coach John Mackovic's last two recruiting classes. He expects UT's graduation rate to improve significantly over the next two years, when the figures will be based solely on players recruited by coach Mack Brown.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/stories/092806dnspogradrates.32443f4.html

[n8v_ndn]

Just trying to break the monotony of '______ Sooner of all-time' threads...

"First-year data from the NCAA’s new Graduation Success Rate (GSR) show that about three-fourths of Division I student-athletes are succeeding in the classroom and earning their college degrees.

The GSR is a new NCAA measurement that improves the federally mandated graduation-rate by including transfer data in the calculation. It was developed in response to college and university presidents who wanted graduation data that more accurately reflect the mobility among students in today’s higher education climate."

linkage (http://www.ncaasports.com/story/9105709)

It says in the article: "The two-year-old measure accounts for students who left in good academic standing and for those who transferred in. The older, required federal graduation rates do neither and miss about 35 percent of student-athletes, according to NCAA officials."

As for it being old data, they're accounting for multiple 6 year spans of time, and "the GSR track the four most recent cohort, the entering classes of 1995-96 to 1998-99".

Sounds like ya'll are referring to the old federal measure. The GSR's intent is to measure how successful programs are in graduating student-athletes in many sports (whether they be transfers-in or not), so what happens to pro athletes is negligible and not the focus.

"If you're going to participate in class, do yourself a favor, come prepared...or not" :)

[CincySooner]

transfers or not, 12% is awful for ISU basket ball.

[PAW]

If nothing else, it provides more evidence of the suck that is UT. They're last in the top 25 too. :texan:

[Herr Scholz]

If nothing else, it provides more evidence of the suck that is UT. They're last in the top 25 too. :texan:
Why does that prove UT sucks? I'd say it's an indication that we make our student athletes actually work for a degree. That many aren't earning their degrees is problematic, but it's their fault.

[PAW]

Why does that prove UT sucks? I'd say it's an indication that we make our student athletes actually work for a degree. That many aren't earning their degrees is problematic, but it's their fault.

That spin . . . sucks too, it's just the sound of swirling air as its being sucked into the black hole suckage that is UT. More evidence. Con . . . clu . . . to . . . the . . . usive, Texas is suck! :texan:

[Herr Scholz]

Hey, Paw, did you know that Cole Pittman counts against Texas in these rates? He's the kid who died tragically while returning for spring practice several years ago. The old NCAA grad rates are completely useless. However the NCAA has a new forumla out, and the Longhorns are doing quite well with that one.

But please, hate away.

[PAW]

Hey, Paw, did you know that Cole Pittman counts against Texas in these rates? He's the kid who died tragically while returning for spring practice several years ago. The old NCAA grad rates are completely useless. However the NCAA has a new forumla out, and the Longhorns are doing quite well with that one.

But please, hate away.

Lighten up, Herr Francis. Y'all may have a game this week, but some of us over here on Soonerfans are working up to RRS week.

The new GSR rate, which the NCAA is using and takes into account the transfers, is what has UT at the bottom of the Big XII and the top 25 teams in the current polls, if I'm not mistaken. I'm sorry about Pittman, but I doubt he had that much impact on the rate. Tragically, several teams have had deaths over the past 5-6 years. Not all of them are at the bottom, so don't throw that at me as if I'm stomping on his grave when discussing the grad rate at UT and in the Big XII. A player died so that means when can't discuss grad rates . . . please. I tell you what . . . I'll give y'all an extra 2%. They still suck!

Are comparisons difficult between different academic institutions, of course. But I'm not going to let that get in the of "hating away" on UT. Verstehen Sie?

You want more evidence? Go check out that chanker on Mack's lip. What's he been sucking on? :eek:

[OUstud]

You'd think KU football would be better with such a low rate...

[n8v_ndn]

...However the NCAA has a new forumla out, and the Longhorns are doing quite well with that one.

But please, hate away.

You mean newer than the latest one mentioned in the article?? Oh, pray tell...

You do soooo much stretching and reaching, I bet you're a champeen Twister player. :texan:

[sooner518]

Texas sucks, but for reasons other than graduation rate.

[stoopified]

Is it just me or is Herr awful touchy considering the RRS IS IS STILL 9 DAYS AWAY?

[PAW]

Is it just me or is Herr awful touchy considering the RRS IS IS STILL 9 DAYS AWAY?

Maybe he didn't bring his curtain with him. :texan: