April 13, 2016

The University of Notre Dame received 16 NCAA Academic Progress Rate public recognition awards as the NCAA today honored Division I sports teams for their latest multi-year APR scores.

Notre Dame ranked among the top two NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision institutions for the eighth consecutive year with its 16 public recognition awards. The Irish have finished first in number of awards received in 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 and second in 2010, 2015 and 2016.

The NCAA announcement is intended to highlight teams that demonstrate a commitment to academic progress and retention of student-athletes by achieving the top APRs within their respective sports.

The 16 recognized Irish teams posted multi-year APR scores in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sports. In the 10th year the NCAA has presented these honors, the latest awards are based on APR numbers that represent the combination of scores from the 2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 academic years.

Here are the 16 Notre Dame programs honored this year for multi-year achievement:

• Men’s Sports (7): cross country, fencing, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track and field.
• Women’s Sports (9): basketball, cross country, fencing, lacrosse, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, volleyball.

Here are the FBS institutions that ranked in the top 10 in 2016, in terms of programs honored:
1. Stanford (17)
2. Notre Dame (16)
3. Duke (15)
4. Minnesota (14)
5. (tie) Boston College, Northwestern (12)
7. (tie) Michigan, Rice (10)
9. Virginia (8)
10. (tie) Navy, North Carolina, Tulane (7 each)

Notre Dame’s second-place finish in 2016 in terms of sports honored comes after the Irish produced the largest number of honored programs in four of the previous five years. The 16 Notre Dame programs honored rank one behind the highest figure for recognized Irish sports, matching the 17 received in 2011, 2012 and 2015.

Notre Dame in 2014 and 2013 had 15 sports recognized (first in the FBS in 2014 and tied for first with Duke in 2013), following two consecutive years (2012 and 2011) that a program-best 17 Irish teams were honored with the award. The NCAA recognized 14 Notre Dame programs in both 2010 and 2009 and 11 in both 2008 and 2007. In the 10 years the awards have been presented, Notre Dame five times has produced the most sports honored at the FBS level–finishing second three times, third once and fourth once.

Among individual Notre Dame sports, men’s cross country, men’s golf, men’s track and field and softball have led the way, having been recognized in all 10 years the public recognition awards have been presented. Next on the list are men’s basketball and men’s lacrosse (seven years each), followed by women’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s tennis, men’s fencing, men’s soccer, volleyball and women’s cross country (six each).

The APR provides a real-time look at a team’s academic success each semester by tracking the academic progress of each student-athlete on scholarship. The APR accounts for academic eligibility, retention and graduation at an institution and provides a clear picture of the academic culture in each sport.

The effort is part of a public-recognition program the NCAA Division I Board of Directors approved in January 2006.

Multi-year APR scores for all Division I sports teams, including access to postseason play and penalties for low-performing teams, will be released April 20.

Here is where Notre Dame has ranked annually among FBS institutions in terms of raw number of sports receiving the APR public recognition awards:

• 2016–1. Stanford 17; 2. Notre Dame 16; 3. Duke 15; 4. Minnesota 14; 5. (tie) Boston College, Northwestern 12; 7. (tie) Michigan, Rice 10; 9. Virginia 8; 10. (tie) Navy, North Carolina, Tulane 7.
• 2015–1. Stanford 19; 2. Notre Dame 17; 3. (tie) Duke, Northwestern 15; 5. Minnesota 14; 6. Boston College 12; 7. Michigan 10; 8. Vanderbilt 8; 9. (tie) Arizona State, Illinois, Penn State, Texas, Tulane 7.
• 2014–1. Notre Dame 15; 2. (tie) Duke, Stanford 14; 4. (tie) Boston College, Minnesota, Northwestern 12; 7. Penn State 8; 8. Vanderbilt 7; 9. (tie) Connecticut, Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio State, Ohio University 6.
• 2013–1.(tie) Notre Dame, Duke 15; 3. Northwestern 14; 4. (tie) Boston College, Stanford 13; 6. (tie) Penn State, Vanderbilt 8; 8. Rice 7; 9. (tie) Texas, Illinois, Ohio State 6.
• 2012–1. Notre Dame 17; 2. Duke 13; 3. (tie) Boston College, Northwestern, Stanford 10; 7. (tie) Texas, Wake Forest 7; 9. Rice 6; 10. (tie) Illinois, Miami (Florida), Ohio State, Tulane 5.
• 2011–1. Notre Dame 17; 2. Duke 15; 3. Boston College 11, 4. Vanderbilt 10; 5. (tie) Northwestern, Penn State, Stanford, Texas 9; 9. U.S. Naval Academy 8; 10. North Carolina 7.
• 2010–1. Duke 15, 2. Notre Dame 14, 3. Boston College 13, 4. Northwestern 10, 5. U.S. Naval Academy 9, 6. (tie) North Carolina, Stanford 8; 8. Vanderbilt 7; 9. (tie) Michigan, Rice, Vanderbilt 6.
• 2009–1. Notre Dame 14; 2. Duke 12; 3. (tie) Boston College, Stanford, U.S. Naval Academy 11; 6. Rice 7; 7. (tie) Michigan, North Carolina 6; 9. (tie) Northwestern, Penn State, Virginia, Wake Forest 5.
• 2008–1. (tie) Duke, U.S. Naval Academy 12; 3. Notre Dame 11; 4. (tie) Boston College, Stanford 10; 6. (tie) North Carolina, Northwestern 8.
• 2007–1. U.S. Naval Academy 14; 2. (tie) Boston College, Stanford 12; 4. (tie) Notre Dame, Duke, Rice 11; 7. Northwestern 9; 8. North Carolina 7.