The Ohio State football program has had some elite success on the field over the course of its history, but it doesn’t get nearly the notoriety it deserves in the classroom. Yes, it is the defending College Football Playoff national champion, but does it shuck aside academic efforts for glory on the gridiron?
It’s not easy being a student-athlete, especially with all of the travel and responsibilities that come with being a big-time college football player, so simply being able to juggle it all is commendable. Gone are the days of going to college just to be an athlete and letting the chips fall where they may with academics, because the NCAA now keeps track of how students are progressing towards graduating with a metric called Academic Progress Rate.
So, what exactly is APR? Straight out of the NCAA’s handbook, APR is defined specifically as:
The APR, or Academic Progress Rate, holds institutions accountable for the academic progress of their student-athletes through a team-based metric that accounts for the eligibility and retention of each student-athlete for each academic term.
A good APR standing can be a big deal. Programs must remain above a four-year average APR of 930 to compete in postseason play and not face penalties. In fact, Akron (APR of 914) just became the first program since 2014 to receive an academic-related postseason ban. This means the Zips will be unable to play in any bowl games, should they qualify. A lesser impact, but if needed, APR can also be utilized to break ties when it comes to bowl eligibility. If 5-7 teams are needed to finalize the schedule, the highest APR often earns the bid.
A perfect 1,000 score is hard to attain, and in fact, only one program achieved that metric, and it does indeed reside in the Big Ten, go kudos to the league. Five Big Ten programs reside in the top 20 of APR scores, so besides winning the last two College Football Playoff national championships, the league is also getting it with the books and test taking.
Here’s a look at all 18 Big Ten programs and how they rank from worst to first with APR rankings. All metrics include the four-year composite of the 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23, and 2023-24 school years. Included is the ranking from last year for comparison.
No. 18 – Oregon Ducks
APR Score: 946
2024 APR: 942 (No. 17)
Oregon has had a lot of success on the field, winning the regular-season title and Big Ten Championship game last year, but it has some work to do when it comes to its peers in the conference with APR. Oregon is not in danger of missing out on the postseason, but there needs to be more focus on progressing student-athletes towards graduation.
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No. 17 – Penn State Nittany Lions
APR Score: 947
2024 APR: 947 (No. 16)
Penn State is still not elite on the football field, and it isn’t anywhere near there off the field with the studies either. It’s hard to juggle everything when you are trying to put a winner on the field, but there could be a more concerted effort with graduating players that reside in Happy Valley.
Get more Penn State coverage on Nittany Lions Wire
No. 16 – Maryland Terrapins
APR Score: 962
2024 APR: 942 (No. 18)
This is a bit surprising with all the emphasis Maryland puts on academics. Sometimes what happens with a school’s athletes doesn’t mirror the rest of the student body, and to be clear, the Terps aren’t falling all over themselves, but the improvement shown since last year needs to continue.
No. 15 – UCLA Bruins
APR Score: 967
2024 APR: 972 (No. 12)
It’s hard to really know what to think about this metric for UCLA. The Bruins have a very good academic reputation, but despite a lack of success on the football field, the APR rate is not what you’d expect. The last year or so has been one of transition, so maybe that’s had an impact. Still, this is a bit surprising.
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No. 14 – Michigan State Spartans
APR Score: 968
2024 APR: 974 (No. 10)
Ho hum. Michigan State hasn’t been anywhere near the top of the league on the field the last few years, and with all of the transfers we’ve seen come into the program, it hasn’t done as much as its colleagues in the rest of the Big Ten. Stability seems to help APR, so maybe we’ll see this climb if the coaching staff can stick around.
Get more Michigan State coverage on Spartans Wire
No. 13 – Illinois Fighting Illini
APR Score: 971
2024 APR: 967 (No. 15)
Brett Bielema has done a fantastic job turning around the fortunes of the Illini on the football field, and he’s actually seen some modest improvement in APR score as well. Yes, it could be better for an academic institution like Illinois, but progress is being made on and off the field.
No. 12 – Purdue Boilermakers
APR Score: 972
2024 APR: 976 (No. 9)
Purdue has been absolutely horrible at playing the game of American football, and it’s seen its APR decline a little bit as well. When you can’t win on the field, you’d think there would be better luck winning off of it. Again, though, with the instability of the coaching staff, maybe it’s taken a toll.
No. 10 (tie) – USC Trojans
APR Score: 976
2024 APR: 976 (No. 8)
USC is a very good private school, so I’m a bit surprised the Trojans weren’t in the top five here. You’d expect a little more from Lincoln Riley when it comes to winning football games, and that also translates to opening up the books and getting after it.
Get more USC coverage on Trojans Wire
No. 10 (tie) – Nebraska Cornhuskers
APR Score: 976
2024 APR: 972 (No. 14)
Nebraska is the lone school that is not an AAU Member and might be looked down on by other Big Ten institutions when it comes to academics. However, the ‘Huskers have improved quite significantly in the classroom and are showing a little forward momentum between the lines as well.
Get more Nebraska coverage on Cornhuskers Wire
No. 8 (tie) – Washington Huskies
APR Score: 978
2024 APR: 982 (No. 7)
Washington is a great school for academics, and you’d expect a little more in Seattle when it comes to graduating players. We’ll give new head coach Jed Fisch a little time to see if he can make some improvements inside the arena and beyond.
Get more Washington coverage on Huskies Wire
No. 8 (tie) – Rutgers Scarlet Knights
APR Score: 978
2024 APR: 972 (No. 13)
Greg Schiano doesn’t get enough credit for how he is turning this program around. Not only are more wins coming when games are played on Saturday, but the APR rate also continues to climb. He believes in discipline and structure and that seems to be shining through in all areas.
No. 6 (tie) – Iowa Hawkeyes
APR Score: 982
2024 APR: 974 (No. 11)
Iowa is right about where it is when it comes to competing in the league when games are played. The Hawkeyes always seem to be slightly above average, and that’s the case with efforts to graduate players as well. Honestly, I’m a little surprised with the type of kid Iowa graduates that the Hawkeyes aren’t a little higher here. 982 is good, but not great for the program.
Get more Iowa coverage on Hawkeyes Wire
No. 6 (tie) – Indiana Hoosiers
APR Score: 982
2024 APR: 983 (No. 6)
Indiana made a significant jump in being competitive under new head coach Curt Cignetti last year, but the jury is still out on how all the transfers he got to come to Bloomington will impact the APR rate in the future. Will there be a trade-off of wins to graduating players? Time will tell.
No. 5 – Wisconsin Badgers
APR Score: 991
2024 APR: 993 (No. 4)
Wisconsin has done very well graduating its players over the years, and that has continued under Luke Fickell so far with just a modest decline. Nobody will care, though if he can’t start winning at a greater clip inside Camp Randall Stadium.
Get more Wisconsin coverage on Badgers Wire
No. 4 – Minnesota Golden Gophers
APR Score: 992
2024 APR: 992 (No. 5)
I am not surprised at all that Minnesota does well here. P.J. Fleck is a guy who seems to get the big picture. He’s able to get the most out of his teams and also gets them to understand that there is more to life outside of football.
No. 3 – Northwestern Wildcats
APR Score: 993
2024 APR: 996 (No. 2)
It’s no surprise that Northwestern graduates players at a pretty high rate, but I am a little taken aback that the Wildcats don’t lead the league here. If you consider yourself the best academic institution in the Big Ten, one would want to believe that players are working towards graduation better than any other program.
No. 2 – Michigan Wolverines
APR Score: 996
2024 APR: 993 (No. 3)
This feels about right. Michigan is one of the best academic schools in the Big Ten, and there’s a clear emphasis on graduating players. That will most likely continue at a place that continues to place such an emphasis on scholastic achievement.
Get more Michigan coverage on Wolverines Wire
No. 1 – Ohio State Buckeyes
APR Score: 1000
2024 APR: 1000 (No. 1)
The college football world was probably shocked to see Ohio State leading the country in APR. It’s not that Ohio State is a low-level institution, and it continues to up academic standards and perceptions, but it’s not exactly a Northwestern, Duke, or Stanford. Ryan Day and his staff really need to be getting more credit for winning on the field while still graduating all of their players. It’s truly remarkable for the football factory that Ohio State is.
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This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: All eighteen Big Ten programs ranked by APR. Where is Ohio State?