Murray State University Athletics
Racers Continue Tradition Of Academic Excellence in Fall 2020
12/14/2020 8:05:00 AM | General
Racers show continued development, as students and future professionals, through high academic and graduation achievement
A robust Graduation Success Rate, continued success in the Academic Progress Rate and an extension of one of the greatest academic traditions in the Ohio Valley Conference are just a few of the Murray State athletics department's highlights in the Fall 2020 academic semester.
"Like all things we achieve in Racer athletics, this academic accomplishment is a credit to many people," said Senior Associate Athletics Director Matt Kelly. "Our student-athletes work hard in the classroom. We are fortunate to have student-athletes year after year that take their grades and graduation seriously and as a challenge. I am thankful for coaches and other administrators that place an emphasis on also being champions in the classroom. I want to additionally thank Dr. Gesler, our Faculty Athletics Representative, and all of the faculty that work with our student-athletes every semester that are also an important part of the success in the classroom."
The Fall 2020 semester saw record production by the Racers in the classroom, including an extension of the most important streak in MSU athletics history, a now 33-consecutive semesters of a department-wide GPA of 3.0 or better. The 3.22 GPA is the second-highest in the history of the 33 semester streak, surpassed only by a 3.32 achieved in the spring of 2020. In addition, 13 of 15 teams had a GPA of 3.0 or better, led by an impressive 3.65 from women's soccer. Individually, 12 of the 15 Murray State teams outperformed their 15-year average in the Fall of 2020. Those teams that outperformed their average were baseball, men's basketball, women's basketball, women's cross country, football, women's golf, rifle, women's soccer, softball, women's tennis and indoor and outdoor women's track and field.
In total, 53 student-athletes registered a perfect 4.0 GPA, 140 had a 3.5 or better, qualifying them for the MSU Dean's List, and 73.8-percent of student-athletes achieved at least a 3.0 GPA in the fall semester. In addition, 2020 saw 103 current and former Racers graduate from Murray State including nine with post-graduate degrees.
"Developing young people as students, persons, players and eventually professionals, continues to be our department's primary objective," said Director of Athletics Kevin Saal. "Congratulations to our 321 student-athletes, and a first-class academic support team led by Matt Kelly, who display a daily relentless pursuit of excellence in the classroom. Thank you to the Dick & Jan Weaver Family for providing a first-class environment (The Weaver Academic Center) in which our student-athletes continue to achieve remarkably."
The Racers' sustained success in the classroom continues to pay dividends for its student-athletes earning their degrees. The athletic department's reported figures in two separate metrics continue to show the Racers not only graduate a high percentage of their student-athletes, but also do so at a higher rate than the university average. The NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) and the Federal Graduation Rate (FGR) are both metrics used to determine a department's relative success graduating student-athletes. The FGR is a federally mandated statistic reported every year, while the GSR is the NCAA's metric, used to determine how successful schools are at graduating student-athletes. Both metrics calculate student matriculation across a six-year window, however the GSR takes into account factors the FGR does not, such as incoming transfers, mid-year enrollees and outgoing transfers in good standing.
Per the GSR, the Racers graduated 86-percent of the student-athletes that began or would have begun their college careers in 2013-14. This represents the second highest GSR in department history, just shy of the 89 reported for the freshman class of 2012-13. This year's 86-percent brings the department's 16-year average to 79.7 and marks the eighth consecutive reporting year that Murray State athletics has graduated its student-athletes at a rate of 80-percent or better.
The FGR provides two data points: a single-year graduation rate for any given cohort year and a rate that not only includes the current cohort year but the previous three as well, essentially providing the graduation rate for any student that was on campus in a given year. For cohort 2013-14, Murray State athletics reported its second-highest four-year FGR ever and for the 16th-straight year graduated student-athletes at a higher-rate than the University as a whole.
The Racers also excelled in another NCAA metric: the Academic Progress Rate (APR). The APR is a term-by-term metric, assigned to individual teams and the department, measuring eligibility and retention for Division I student-athletes, developed as an early indicator of eventual graduation rates. The APR prioritizes eligibility, retention and eventual graduation in the calculation, providing a clear picture of the academic culture within each sport. Last year, MSU posted a department-wide APR of 983, well above its 17-year average of 965 and the 930 mandated by the NCAA to compete in post-season championships.
Additionally, this year the NCAA honored the Racer men's cross country, rifle, softball and women's tennis teams with APR Public Recognition Awards, for a perfect 1000 APR during the 2018-19 academic year. At least one Racer team has earned an NCAA APR Public Recognition Award in 10 of the last 11 years, and 11 of the last 15 years, dating back to the program's inception. Women's tennis has earned the award for four consecutive seasons, tying them with men's golf for the most awards (6) in department history. Softball earned its third consecutive win this past season, while rifle and men's cross country each picked up their second consecutive award.
For more information, on the GSR, FGR and APR, please click on the links on right side of this page.
