UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Nineteen Penn State student-athletes are scheduled to graduate Saturday, December 18 during Commencement ceremonies.
The Nittany Lion student-athletes represent 12 sports on the intent to graduate list. The football program leads the Penn State athletic department with six student-athletes. Baseball, women's fencing, men's hockey, men's soccer, women's soccer, softball, men's swimming & diving, women's swimming & diving, men's track & field, women's track & field and women's volleyball all have student-athletes who will earn degrees on Saturday.
Among the students who have expressed intent to graduate, is women's soccer Kerry Abello, who was the CoSIDA Women's Academic All-American of the Year in 2020-21. Abello carries a perfect 4.0 GPA in science and was recently CoSIDA Women's Soccer Academic All-American of the Year for the second time and first-team CoSIDA Academic All-America for the third time.
During the 2021 calendar year, 164 Nittany Lions earned their degrees (Spring 2021-130, Summer 2021-15, Fall 2021-19).
Total of 27 football student-athletes have earned 28 degrees prior to the Outback Bowl
With the six new graduates on Saturday, the Nittany Lions football team has 27 student-athletes who have earned 28 degrees prior to the Outback Bowl vs. Arkansas on January 1. Jaquan Brisker, Bradley King, PJ Mustipher, Nick Tarburton, Dan Vasey and Ben Wilson are all slated to graduate Saturday.
2021 Fall Academic All-Big Ten Honorees
A program-record 131 Penn State student-athletes earned Academic All-Big Ten honors for Penn State's fall programs. The 131 honorees are the most in Penn State's fall history, topping the 117 selections in the fall of 2017. Victoria Vanriele (women's cross country), Jonathan Sutherland (football), Kerry Abello (women's soccer), Sam Coffey (women's soccer), Olivia Damico (women's soccer) and Payton Sewall (men's cross country) all had perfect 4.0 GPAs.
Among those on the list of fall Academic All-Big Ten honorees is senior Kerry Abello from the women's soccer program. Abello is a two-time CoSIDA Women's Soccer Academic All-American of the Year, three-time first-team CoSIDA Academic All-America and the CoSIDA Women's Academic All-American of the Year in 2020-21. Women's soccer's Sam Coffey and men's soccer's Pierre Reedy also earned CoSIDA Academic All-America accolades this fall. In total, Penn State has earned 216 Academic All-America honors in program history.
Graduation Success Rates
Penn State student-athletes continue to register record-breaking graduation rates and perform well above their peers nationwide. The Nittany Lions posted a fifth consecutive record-breaking or record-tying academic performance with a 92 percent graduation success rate, according to data reported by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
The NCAA's annual graduation rates report of Division I institutions across the nation revealed Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 92% to tie the school's all-time record of 92, which was previously set in the 2020 NCAA report. Nittany Lion students posted a 92% graduation rate compared to the 89% average for all Division I institutions for students entering from 2011-12 through the 2014-15 academic year.
Penn State student-athletes have logged a Graduation Success Rate in the 88-92% range during each of the past 15 NCAA reports, improving from 88% in the 2015 report to a record-breaking 92% report in 2020 and 2021.
Sixteen of the Nittany Lions' 27 teams (men's and women's track and field/cross country teams combined) earned a Graduation Success Rate at or above the Division I national GSR average for their respective sport. A total of 18 Penn State squads has a GSR of 90% or higher.
Penn State Among the Nation's Most Comprehensive and Successful Athletic Programs
Under the leadership of Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour, 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). The Nittany Lions' 31 programs are tied for the fourth-highest number of sports sponsored by a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) institution.
