California extended its streak of top-10 finishes in the Directors’ Cup to five in a row with a ninth-place showing in the final standings released Thursday. The Golden Bears, along with Stanford and Florida, are the only three schools in the country to finish among the top 10 of the rankings of best overall collegiate athletic programs each of the last five years.
During the 2009-10 seasons, Cal’s programs recorded a pair of NCAA runner-up finishes in men’s swimming and women’s rowing. The Bears were also in the top five in women’s swimming (3rd), men’s gymnastics (5th) and women’s volleyball (5th). In all, 17 programs contributed to Cal’s total of 1,013.50 points. Cal’s top-10 run began in 2006 when the Bears placed seventh. The Bears were then ninth in 2007 and seventh in both 2008 and ’09. Cal first achieved top-10 status in 2003 and 2004, taking ninth both years.
For 2009-10, the Bears are third among Pac-10 institutions behind No. 1 Stanford and No. 4 UCLA. Other conference schools in the top 30 are USC (13th), Oregon (14th), Arizona State (22nd), Washington (24th) and Arizona (30th).
The Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in up to 20 sports – 10 women’s and 10 men’s. Because they are not NCAA-sponsored sports, Cal’s national championship in rugby and runner-up team finish in men’s crew are not counted.
For a complete look at the 2009-10 Directors’ Cup standings, visit nacda.com.
Below is a year-by-year look at Cal’s finishes in the Directors’ Cup:
2009-10 9th 2008-09 7th 2007-08 7th 2006-07 9th 2005-06 7th 2004-05 15th 2003-04 9th 2002-03 9th 2001-02 20th 2000-01 12th 1999-00 15th 1998-99 23rd 1997-98 19th 1996-97 26th 1995-96 30th 1994-95 13th 1993-94 17th
Cal scored Directors' Cup points in the following sports in 2009-10:
Baseball 49th (25 points) Men’s Basketball 17th (50 points) Football 44th (25 points) Men’s Golf 23rd (51 points) Women’s Golf 31st (42 points) Men’s Gymnastics 5th (73 points) Women’s Rowing 2nd (90 points) Women’s Soccer 17th (50 points) Softball 9th (64 points) Men’s Swimming & Diving 2nd (90 points) Women’s Swimming & Diving 3rd (85 points) Men’s Tennis 17th (50 points) Women’s Tennis 9th (64 points) Men’s Indoor Track & Field 17th (56.5 points) Men’s Outdoor Track & Field 21st (52.5 points) Volleyball 5th (73 points) Women’s Water Polo 3rd (72.5 points)
Final Directors’ Cup Standings
1. Stanford 1508.50 2. Florida 1310.25 3. Virginia 1253.25 4. UCLA 1124.00 5. Florida State 1087.50 6. Texas A&M 1070.75 7. North Carolina 1029.30 8. Ohio State 1015.50 9. California 1013.50 10. Duke 982.75