UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State's comprehensive and successful athletic program has again been ranked among the nation's Top 10, according to a five-year survey compiled by Yahoo! Sports.
The Nittany Lions ranked No. 9 among the nation's 65 Autonomy Five institutions for the second consecutive year, according to Yahoo! Sports. The survey incorporated the final results of the past five Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup rankings. Penn State has finished in the Directors' Cup Top 15 nine times in the past 10 years, including No. 13 this past year.
The 2018-19 academic year marked the 20th time in the last 26 years that the Nittany Lions have posted a Top 15 Directors' Cup finish. Penn State is one of only nine institutions nationwide to have finished in the Top 25 in all 25 Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup final standings.
Nittany Lions Lead Big Ten With Eight NCAA Championships in Past Five Years; Earn 24 Big Ten Titles
Since the 2014-15 academic year, Penn State leads all Big Ten institutions with eight NCAA Championships, the highest total of any institution in the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast or Midwest. The Nittany Lions have won NCAA titles in men's and women's fencing, women's soccer, women's volleyball and wrestling since the 2014 spring semester.
Also over the past five academic years, Penn State has won 24 Big Ten Championships in 12 different sports.
The Nittany Lions earned one NCAA Championship and six Big Ten Conference crowns in 2018-19 under the leadership of Sandy Barbour, Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics. The wrestling squad won its fourth consecutive and eighth NCAA Championship in the past nine years, crowning three individual national champions.
Penn State captured six Big Ten Championships or tournament titles in men's gymnastics, men's lacrosse, women's soccer and wrestling in 2018-19. Nineteen of Nittany Lions' 31 teams participated in their respective NCAA Championships or played in a bowl game this past year, winning one NCAA title and six Big Ten crowns.
Nittany Lion students also won six individual NCAA Championships and 12 individual Big Ten titles this past year.
Penn State Among the Nation's Most Comprehensive and Successful Athletic Programs
Under the Barbour's leadership, Penn State has one of the nation's most comprehensive and successful athletic programs, featuring 800 student-athletes across 31 varsity programs (16 men's, 15 women's).
Nittany Lion students have posted an NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 90 percent the past two years, which ties Penn State' all-time high. Eight teams earned a 100 percent graduation rate in the 2018 NCAA Graduation Rates Report. The Nittany Lions rank No. 4 among all Division I schools with 205 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans all-time and broke the school record with 368 Academic All-Big Ten honorees (3.0 GPA or higher) and 117 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars (3.7 GPA or higher).
A semester school record 135 Penn State students-athletes graduated in May, boosting the number of graduates in 2018-19 to a yearly record total of 169, with additional graduates to come in August.
Penn State's 51 NCAA Championships all-time (79 national championships overall) rank No. 5 among all NCAA Division I programs and are the highest total of any college or university east of the Mississippi River. Penn State's 21 NCAA titles since 2007 are tied for No. 3 in the nation and lead all Big Ten Conference institutions. The Nittany Lions have won 113 Big Ten championships or tournament titles since capturing their first crown in 1992-93, including six during the 2018-19 academic year.
The Yahoo! Sports ranking of the 65 Autonomy Five athletic programs can be found here.
