280 student-athletes earn Honor Roll recognition;
15 of 17 programs post 3.0 or better Fall term GPA
TAMPA, JAN. 21, 2021 – University of South Florida student-athletes continued to post strong performances in the classroom during the most recent fall semester, as USF Athletics extended its record run to 12 straight semesters with a department grade-point average of 3.0 or better.
Following the compilation of 2020 fall grades, USF saw 15 of 17 programs post a term GPA of 3.0 or better and nearly 450 student-athletes post a combined fall term GPA of 3.19. The Bulls had 14 of 17 programs maintain a combined cumulative GPA over 3.0 with over 65 percent of student-athletes maintaining an individual cumulative GPA over 3.0.
After a record 285 Bulls earned Athletics Honor Roll recognition in the spring of 2020, the Bulls nearly matched the mark in the fall with 280 student-athletes (63.6%) achieving the recognition. The Bulls also saw 29 student-athletes earn a USF degree following the 2020 fall semester.
“Our student-athletes continue to take the changes and challenges that have come from the pandemic and respond by maintaining their focus in the classroom and continuing to achieve at a high level,” Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly said. “I’m very proud of how our academic staff and coaches have found effective solutions shifting very quickly and effectively to distance education and providing academic support services and guidance virtually at a nation-leading level.”
The Bulls were coming off a 2020 spring term GPA of 3.41, which shattered the previous record of 3.13 set the previous semester (Fall, 2019) and have continued a run of 3.0 or better department GPAs that dates to the spring of 2015.
Athletics saw 296 student-athletes (67.2%) post a 3.0 or better GPA in the fall term and 40 log a 4.0. That helped push the cumulative GPA of 289 student-athletes (65.6%) above a 3.0, with 18 maintaining a perfect 4.0 cumulative mark.
USF women’s programs earned a fall term GPA of 3.43 with all women all nine women’s programs registering a fall term GPA over 3.0. The defending American Conference champion women’s soccer team led by Denise Schilte-Brown led the way with a 3.62 GPA in the fall.
USF’s men’s programs posted a fall term GPA of 3.01 with six registering a GPA over 3.0 and all eight logging marks of 2.75 or better for the fall. The five-time American Athletic Conference champion men’s tennis team led by Ashley Fisher led all men’s teams with a 3.45 GPA in the fall.
The fall academic success comes on the heels of a record 13 programs logging perfect single-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores and the department posting an overall record 995 single-year score when the NCAA released its most recent data last spring.
About USF Athletics
USF Athletics sponsors 19 varsity men’s and women’s teams that compete in 11 different sports, 18 at the NCAA Division I level in the American Athletic Conference. The Bulls’ athletic program began in 1965 and is in its 55th season in 2020-21. Nearly 450 student-athletes train and compete in the athletic district located on the east end of the campus in Tampa, Fla. The Bulls have claimed 19 American Athletic Conference team titles since joining the conference in 2013, and own 120 conference titles overall. The Bulls posted a combined annual grade-point average over 3.0 for the fifth straight year in 2019-20 and have posted a program record 12 straight semesters with a combined GPA over 3.0. USF has had nearly 400 student-athletes earn their degree since 2016-17.
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