Texas leads Big 12 with 217 Academic All-Conference honors

By Steve Lansdale

AUSTIN, Texas — At UT, the first half of “student-athlete” is as much a source of pride as the second. The Longhorns are expected to compete with the best in the Big 12 academically as well as academically … and in the 2019-20 school year that was abbreviated because of the novel coronavirus that shut down campuses across the country, they delivered, as UT led all Big 12 schools with 217 student-athletes on Academic All-Big 12 teams.

Of the 217 Academic All-Big 12 selections, [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]157 were first-team selections. The 217 total honorees in 2019-20 represented a significant jump from the 181 UT student-athletes who were honored in 2018-19.

“We are so proud of our student-athletes and all they’re accomplishing both in their sports and in the classroom,” Texas vice president and athletics director Chris Del Conte said. “To have the most Academic All-Big 12 selections of any school in our conference this year is truly impressive. It says a lot about everything our student-athletes do in their commitment to academics, but also the focus our coaches, staff and entire department put on the total student-athlete.

“That has never been more evident than during the challenges we are currently facing, but we’re thrilled to see our student-athletes overcoming that adversity and continuing to achieve at a very high level in the classroom. This is something we will all celebrate with as much pride as any victory.”

Of the 10 teams in the Big 12, Kansas was the only other school to have more than 200 honored by the conference, with 207.

Rowing led all UT teams with 28 honorees, followed by football and women’s track and field, each of which had 21 student-athletes honored. Men’s swimming and diving had 19 on the teams, while the women’s swimming and diving teams had 17. Soccer and baseball each set a program record with 17 and 15 selections, respectively.

The final totals for all sports:

Rowing: 28
Women’s track and field: 21
Football: 21
Men’s swimming and diving: 19
Soccer: 17
Women’s swimming and diving: 17
Men’s track and field: 15
Baseball: 15
Women’s cross country: 11
Softball: 11
Volleyball: 10
Men’s cross country: 7
Women’s golf: 6
Men’s golf: 5
Women’s tennis: 4
Men’s tennis: 4
Men’s basketball: 3
Women’s basketball: 3

To qualify for Academic All-Big 12, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulatively or over the two previous semesters. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first years of academic residence.

2019-20 Academic All-Big 12 Totals 
Texas – 217
Kansas – 207
Baylor – 195
Oklahoma State – 187
WVU – 182
Oklahoma – 177
Texas Tech – 167
Iowa State – 164
K-State – 162
TCU – 123
[/s2If] [s2If !current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)] [habeabk] [/s2If]