Learfield Directors’ Cup

Tennessee finishes third in LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup standings

Tennessee athletics finishes third in LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup standings.

Tennessee’s athletic program finished third in the 2023-24 LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup standings. The Vols’ and Lady Vols’ finish was announced Wednesday by the National Association of College Directors of Athletics.

Tennessee has continued a steady climb in the Directors’ Cup standings since since Vice Chancellor/Director of Athletics Danny White arrived on campus in 2021.

UT finished 26th in 2020-21 before improving to 13th in 2021-22. Tennessee finished sixth last year.

Before finishing sixth in 2022-23, Tennessee last posted a top 10 finish in the Directors’ Cup standings was in 2006-07 when it finished seventh.

“In rise glorious, our five-year strategic plan competitive excellence has been one of the primary pillars of importance to our athletics department,” White said. “Achieving a third-place finish in the LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup is a remarkable accomplishment, setting a new benchmark for our department.

“WE take great pride in being an everything school. (with) all 20 of our sports reaching the postseason, with 11 finishing in the top-10 nationally is significant. This historic achievement is the result of everyone’s effort on Rocky Top.”

UT was one of two Power Five Schools to reach the postseason in every sport in 2023-24.

Danny White. Photo by Dan Harralson, Vols Wire

Florida Gators athletics finishes 4th in the nation for Directors’ Cup

Florida Gators athletics earned a fourth-place finish in the 2023-24 Learfield Directors’ Cup standings thanks to multiple national titles.

The University of Florida has once again put together a stellar overall performance from its student-athletes in collegiate competition over the past school year. As a result, the Orange and Blue earned a fourth-place finish in the 2023-24 Learfield Directors’ Cup standings.

The honor was bestowed upon the Gators thanks to 11 top-five team finishes over that stretch. Florida’s third consecutive NCAA men’s outdoor track and field title highlighted the school’s top-five finish.

UF’s athletics program is the only one to finish among the nation’s top 10 in each of the last 40 national all-sports standings. This is the 15th consecutive complete season in which the university had at least one national title-winning team.

Florida is one of two programs with a national title each complete season since the 2008-09 campaign; UF has 27 championships in that span.

UF Athletic Director Scott Stricklin reacts

“Another NCAA title by men’s outdoor track & field was among many celebratory moments for the Gators this season,” Strickling began. “Eleven top-five Florida finishes include a national-high nine among the top three.”

Florida’s AD went on to mention the effort required to maintain a high level of competition.

“So much effort and training goes into preparing to compete on the national stage so we applaud the competitive spirit of our student-athletes, coaches and staff.”

The LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup, presented annually by the nation’s athletics directors, recognizes the schools with the best overall sports performances in an academic year. The scoring system uses finishes in NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and women’s volleyball championship action.

Additionally, a program can receive points in up to 15 other sports toward its final score. Texas claimed its third Directors’ Cup this season.

In the last 15 seasons, 15 different programs appeared among the Directors’ Cup final top five. Only Florida and Stanford appear in each top five since 2008-09, with Michigan (7), Ohio State and Southern California (6) earning the next-highest number of top-five finishes in that span.

Read more here for details of Florida’s 2023-24 successes.

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Florida finishes fifth in 2022-23 Learfield Directors’ Cup

Two national championships over the last calendar year led Florida to a fifth place finish in the 2022-23 Learfield Directors’ Cup.

The Florida Gators finished in fifth place for the 2022-23 Learfield Directors’ Cup, according to a press release published on Wednesday by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

Florida finished behind Stanford, Texas, Ohio State and Virginia, in that order. The Gators’ national championships in men’s golf and men’s outdoor track and field. Florida’s recent runner-up finish at the Men’s College World Series also added to a total of 1,091.5 points. Virginia finished with just 14 more points than UF, while Stanford’s 1,412-point showing paced the all athletic programs.

The Southeastern Conference features the most programs in this year’s top 25. Florida leads all schools at No. 5 but is followed closely by No. 6 Tennessee, No. 7 Georgia, No. 9 LSU, No. 12 Alabama, No. 13 Arkansas, No. 18 Kentucky and No. 24 Texas A&M.

Nineteen sports are counted in the final D1 standings, with women’s volleyball and basketball and men’s basketball baseball serving as four constants. The remaining fifteen sports are the highest score for each institution, regardless of gender.

“The LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in NCAA Championships.”

This is Florida’s 14th season in a row finishing in the top five. Despite several second-place finishes, the Gators have never ended the season at No 1 overall.

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