Razorback Student-Athletes Make Record Impact In Classroom
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A phenomenal academic effort by University of Arkansas student-athletes this past year resulted in a second-place ranking among 14 league schools in total selections to the 2015 Southeastern Conference Fall Academic Honor Roll.
A total of 90 Razorbacks earned fall academic honor roll standings among 1,002 student-athletes recognized throughout the league. Only South Carolina had more student-athletes in the fall honor roll with 94.
Razorback football accounted for nearly half of that number, placing an SEC-leading 40 student-athletes on the list and topping the previous high of 32 set in the Fall 2014 semester. In 2013, the program named 28 to the academic list.
“Ranking among the best in the Southeastern Conference is always a hallmark of success,” Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Jeff Long said. “However, being ranked among the top five SEC programs in all categories of the SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll is not just a noted achievement, it is a sign of the tremendous progress we have made academically as a program. To be ranked in the top five in all four fall sports and in total honor roll recipients, is a tremendous credit to our coaches, staff, but most importantly to the hard work and dedication of our student-athletes. Perhaps no other program has seen such a dramatic turnaround as football. Thanks to Coach Bret Bielema and the renewed academic focus of our program, football is making a statement in the classroom as well as on the field. Congratulations to our 90 Razorback scholar-athletes for being recognized for their academic achievements as they continue to pursue their course to graduation.”
This is the third consecutive year football has increased the number of student-athletes who qualified for the SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll. Since 2013, the number of Razorback football players who made the Fall Academic Honor Roll has increased by 42.8 percent.
Arkansas women’s cross country and volleyball finished second overall among their peer programs within the conference with 15 and 11 student-athletes named to the fall honor roll, respectively.
Men’s cross country finished in the top five with seven Razorbacks and soccer contributed 17 to the list.
The 2015 Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll is based on grades from the 2015 spring, summer, and fall terms.
In order to be eligible for nomination to the list, student-athletes must meet the following criteria:
• A student-athlete must have a grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 or above for either the preceding academic year or have a cumulative 3.00 GPA or above at their school
• Summer school GPAs count toward overall GPA calculation
• Student-athletes eligible for the Honor Roll include: Those receiving an athletics scholarship, athletics award recipients, and non-scholarship student-athletes on a varsity team for two seasons
• Prior to being nominated, student-athletes must have successfully completed 24 semester or 36 quarter hours of non-remedial academic credit toward a baccalaureate degree at their school
