Three teams could lose scholarships, including men’s basketball.
By TOM WITOSKY
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
The Iowa men’s basketball team appears to have no margin for error if it is to avoid losing at least one scholarship next season under the NCAA’s new system for monitoring academic progress and retention.
NCAA officials released a final version of Academic Progress Rates for all Division I athletic teams on Monday to adjust for reporting errors in the original report issued in early March.
No changes were reported in the academic progress rates for Iowa State, Northern Iowa and Drake, but 18 sports teams at Iowa had rates adjusted downward by NCAA officials. The school’s overall score also dropped from 972 to 955.
Fred Mims, associate athletic director in charge of academic compliance, said the adjustments were made because of the complexity of the new system.
“There were some mistakes that we made in counting certain students. We corrected them, “Mims said.
The APR system, being implemented for the first time, awards points for each semester an athlete is academically eligible and enrolled.
The standard to avoid possible penalty is 925, which represents a 92.5 percent retention and eligibility rate. The standard is based on NCAA data that shows the 925 number corresponds to a 50 percent graduation rate.
If a team falls below the standard, it will be subject to up to a 10 percent reduction in scholarships.
Iowa’s most critical drops took place in men’s basketball, wrestling and women’s tennis, which now have progress rates below 925. That means each program could be subject to scholarship losses without an improvement of academic retention and eligibility.
In March, Iowa’s men’s basketball reported an APR score of 905, which – while below the NCAA cutline – was still within a margin of error exempting it from possible scholarship loss.
NCAA officials downgraded the Hawkeye men’s program to 870 in its final report. That means Iowa could have lost at least one scholarship this year in men’s basketball if the new NCAA rules governing academic progress were in effect. Iowa State men’s basketball, which had an APR score of 846, also would have faced losing a scholarship.
Meanwhile, Iowa wrestling dropped from 976 to 919 and women’s tennis dipped from 938 to 906. Both wrestling and women’s tennis remained within a so-called “confidence boundary “allowed for teams with relatively small squad numbers.
NCAA officials decided not to penalize teams this academic year. Instead, officials said the notices serve as a warning.
The new substandard rating also increases the chances of an actual scholarship loss as early as the spring of 2006, if any current returning Iowa basketball player is declared ineligible and fails to return to campus in the fall.
“Knock on wood, but I really don’t think this will be an issue (this year) for the basketball team, “Mims said. “The reports that I am getting are very positive with the basketball team.”
New ratings will be determined when this year’s results are combined with results from the 2004-05 school year. Those scores aren’t expected to be made public until early 2006, with penalties to be imposed as early as next spring or the 2006-07 season.
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