Dec. 22, 2000

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame football squad had its most successful semester in the classroom in the history of the program, based on final grades from the fall 2000 semester.

The Irish team finished with its highest combined grade-point average on record, with a 2.67, equal to a “B-minus” (records have been kept since 1992).

Eleven players made the Dean’s List (3.4 GPA or higher) including three starters — junior tailback Tony Fisher (3.41 as economics major in College of Arts and Letters) from Euclid, Ohio, junior fullback Tom Lopienski (3.583 as film, television and theater major in College of Arts and Letters) from Hudson, Ohio, and junior quarterback/flanker Arnaz Battle (3.50 as sociology major in College of Arts and Letters) from Shreveport, La.

Thirty-seven football players had a “B” average or higher, and more than 50 percent of those were starters. Two-thirds of the football team members increased their cumulative grade-point averages from what they had earned the previous semester.

The class of freshman football players had the highest grade-point average (2.5) of all freshman classes on record

The offensive skilled position starters (quarterback, fullback, tailback, flanker, tight end, and split end) combined for a GPA of 3.14. The defensive skilled position starters (linebackers, cornerbacks and safeties) combined for a GPA of 3.01.

Meanwhile, all of Notre Dame’s 25 other varsity programs finished with a combined 3.0 semester grade-point average or higher — led by women’s tennis (3.478), women’s cross country/track and field (3.378), rowing (3.315) and men’s swimming (3.286).