Feb. 27, 2008

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -

Air Force and BYU men's and BYU, Colorado State, Utah and Wyoming women's cross country teams have been honored as 2007 USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams, announced yesterday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Overall, 98 men's Division I programs received the USTFCCCA's academic honor, which is just under a third of all Division I schools that sponsor men's cross country (299). In all, 158 Division I women's programs received the honor. There are 325 teams in Division I that sponsor women's cross country. Of the 158 teams on the list, 35 of them had team GPAs over 3.50.

On the women's side, BYU's team had a combined grade point average of 3.29, while Air Force had a 3.14. For the women, Utah topped the list for MWC schools with a 3.62 GPA. BYU (3.42), Colorado State (3.27) and Wyoming (3.24) followed closely behind.

For a team to be considered for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team award, they must have competed and compiled a team score at an NCAA Regional Meet. The team must also have a minimum 3.00 team cumulative grade point average.

A total of 91 female student-athletes representing 62 Division I institutions were named to the USTFCCCA All-Academic team.

Stanford, the 2007 NCAA team champions, had the most student-athletes on the team with four. Florida State, Michigan State, Northern Arizona, Colorado and Virginia Tech each had three student-athletes on the team.

The award honors those student-athletes who have succeeded both academically and athletically. To be eligible for the award a student-athlete must carry a minimum 3.25 cumulative grade point average and have completed a minimum 24 semester hours through the 2007 fall term. Additionally, the student-athlete must finish in the top 15 runners or top ten percent of finishers at their respective NCAA regional meet, or receive All-American honors.