July 1, 2008

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Seven Mountain West Conference athletic teams have earned a Public Recognition Award from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for their high scores in the latest Academic Progress Rate (APR) compilation. Air Force football, BYU men's basketball and New Mexico women's tennis were recognized for the second consecutive year, and were joined by Air Force's men's basketball, men's outdoor track & field and women's outdoor track & field teams and BYU's women's volleyball team.

The award is provided to those programs that have an NCAA Division I APR in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sport. The NCAA's APR calculation includes eligibility, retention and graduation.

According to APR information submitted for the 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 academic years, the New Mexico women's tennis program earned a perfect 1,000 multi-year APR for the second straight academic term to capture the Public Recognition Award. The Lobos are coached by Kathy Kolankiewicz.

The Air Force outdoor track & field programs led all Falcon athletic teams in APR. The women's outdoor team earned 995 APR points, while the men tabbed 990 points, respectively. Both squads are under the direction of Ralph Lindeman.

Air Force men's basketball, coached by Jeff Reynolds, notched a multi-year APR of 980, more than 50 points more than its peers at the Division I level.

The Falcon football team, which is currently under the helm of Troy Calhoun, earned a multi-year APR of 976, 18 points above football programs at private institutions and 40 points above all programs in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Led by Dave Rose, BYU men's basketball is one of only six programs in the country to earn APR recognition and an NCAA Tournament berth in each of the past two seasons. With a multi-year APR of 987, the Cougars join North Carolina, Villanova, Xavier, Belmont and Davidson.

Of the 41 women's volleyball teams who qualified for this year's public recognition award, BYU joined Stanford as the only two programs to receive APR accolades and also advance to the Elite Eight of the 2007 NCAA Tournament. The Cougars tallied a multi-year APR of 995 and will be coached in 2008 by Shay Goulding.

According to a release issued by the NCAA, Public Recognition Award recipients have "demonstrated their commitment in the classroom and in their sport and are setting a great example for all students."