Not only do Razorback athletes continue to soar in their chosen sports, but most of them have also found a way to succeed in the classroom.
For the third-straight year, University of Arkansas student-athletes have combined to earn the top graduation success rate (GSR) in the history of Razorback athletics. A report released by the NCAA this week confirms that student-athletes who entered the university in 2016, have earned a GSR of 88 percent, topping the previous year’s rate as the highest in school history.
The GSR was developed to track the academic progress of student-athletes, as they worked toward graduation. Arkansas has steadily improved its GSR rate since the measuring tool was implemented by the NCAA in 2005. The Razorback program had an initial rate of 60 that first year, but has risen 28 percentage points throughout the 19 years since. The only two years the percentage declined was in 2012, when it dropped from 73 to 72 percent, and in 2018, when it dropped from 80 to 79 percent.
Most recently, the program posted a 98 percent Razorback Graduation Rate, which is reflective of Arkansas student-athletes who have completed their athletics eligibility.
The rising academic rates in the classroom have also coincided with the most successful performance years in Razorback Athletics history. Arkansas has recorded their three-best Learfield Directors’ Cup finishes in program history in the past three years. The Directors’ Cup was developed jointly between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today, awarding points based on each institution’s finish in NCAA Championships.
Arkansas has won 33 SEC team championships over the past six years, including 15 conference titles in the past three years alone. The Razorbacks lead all SEC programs in both categories, and their total of 33 is more than seven other league programs combined, during that same timeframe.
During the 2022-23 academic year, Arkansas produced one of the most successful years in school history, finishing 13th in the Learfield Directors’ Cup, while student-athletes combined for a 3.20 cumulative GPA, and 166 student-athletes earned academic personal bests. A total of 72 Razorback student-athletes graduated, and another 12 earned graduate certificates.
“Congratulations to the outstanding Razorback student-athletes who continue to achieve record-breaking success in the classroom and on the fields and courts of athletic competition,” Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Hunter Yurachek said. “While we will always cherish the wins and championships achieved in their time as Razorbacks, the lasting legacy of our student-athletes will be as graduates of the University of Arkansas, their names forever inscribed on Senior Walk. I am appreciative of the hard work of our student-athletes and am thankful for the dedicated efforts of our coaches, academic support team and all those who have invested in our mission of Building Champions and Razorbacks for Life.”