Contact: George Mauzy, media specialist (740) 597-1794 or mauzy@ohio.edu
ATHENS, Ohio (February 26, 2001) -- Ohio University's Department of Athletics received some good news in the Feb. 26 issue of The Sporting News. The magazine gave the Athletics Department a 2.83 GPA in overall achievement, placing it 32nd out of 115 schools that play Division I-A football. The 32nd-place finish is the highest in the Mid-American Conference and an improvement over last year's 48th ranking. Miami University was second best among MAC schools with a No. 55 ranking and 2.25 GPA. Ohio University is among the top 25 public schools listed in the rankings.
Other schools with a 2.83 GPA include the University of Connecticut, Ohio State University, Vanderbilt University and the University of Miami, Fla. Behind Ohio University with a 2.67 GPA are Florida State University, University of Iowa, University of Kentucky, Georgia Tech University and the University of Kansas.
"The achievement of this ranking among the nation's finest athletics programs is truly reflective of the exceptional nature of Ohio's coaches, staff and student-athletes," Ohio University Director of Athletics Thomas Boeh said. "Clearly this recognition was made possible through their skill, integrity, creativity and extraordinary work ethic."
The Sporting News graded the athletics departments using a 4.0 grading scale in the areas of "Do We Win?" "Do We Graduate?" "Do We Rock?" and "Do We Play Fair?"
The "Do We Win?" category rated men's basketball and football programs on winning percentage, rankings and postseason performance. "Do We Graduate?" examined the latest four-class graduation rates for the football and men's basketball programs.
The "Do We Rock?" category evaluated the department's success in football and men's basketball attendance and also considered Sears Directors' Cup points, budget size, total number of sports and merchandise sales. The "Do We Play Fair?" grades looked at gender equity, NCAA probation, four-class graduation rates for all athletes, 10-year graduation rates for athletes who exhausted their eligibility and sports added and eliminated.
The Bobcats earned its highest grades of A and A- in the "Do We Play Fair?" and "Do We Graduate?" categories, respectively. Miami was the only other MAC school given an A in "Do We Play Fair?" Bowling Green State University was the only other MAC school with an A- in "Do We Graduate?" Bowling Green finished 65th and the University of Toledo placed 66th and were the only other MAC schools listed among the top 80.
The entire listing of the 115 schools and their grades can be found at: www.sportingnews.com/features/ad/overview-all.html
