April 3, 2006
This week I’d like to just again reiterate what our goal and expectation is as we work to build programs that will win conference championships, have the opportunity to compete for national honors, and continue to have solid graduation success rates.
The expectation and goal for our programs is consistency – pure and simple. That is, given the overall strength of the Atlantic Coast Conference across all sports, the expectation is the development of athletic performance that allows us to be in the upper third to half of the conference year after year. If we consistently achieve at this level, we’ll have those special years that provide a championship. But, if your program cannot consistently be in the upper tier, then it becomes very improbable to have a special year. Consistency is the key.
You can’t hope to achieve consistency without recruiting the student-athlete who can be successful in the academic environment that is now present at Clemson. That will mean on occasion, some prospects that are very minimally NCAA qualified may have to be passed over. The University has a committee – Athletic Admissions Review Committee (AARC) – that looks at academic qualifications. Simply put, the threshold is whether the student-athlete has a reasonable opportunity to be successful academically at Clemson. Therefore, our challenge is to recruit those that are a fit, academically and athletically. Again, this means that there may be some that may qualify under minimal NCAA standards – but that we might not recruit or may not be admitted. On its face, this is a departure from the past. However, the admissions process is vital to retention and ultimate academic success. But, consistency cannot be achieved if student-athletes are not successful academically, and we do a poor job retaining student-athletes. This would result in the loss of scholarships under the new NCAA Academic Progress Rate rules. Loss of scholarships would surely impact both athletic and academic performances and undermine our ability to have a consistent quality program.
Presently, in most of our sports, there is a consistency in performance that provides opportunity to get to and stay at a higher level. We have challenges, but regardless, consistency is the key.
In Solid Orange, Terry Don Phillips
Past Columns March 20, 2006March 13, 2006March 3, 2006February 15, 2006February 3, 2006January 18, 2006January 10, 2006December 21, 2005December 13, 2005December 6, 2005November 30, 2005November 22, 2005November 16, 2005November 9, 2005November 1, 2005October 25, 2005October 19, 2005October 11, 2005October 4, 2005September 26, 2005September 21, 2005September 5, 2005August 23, 2005August 4, 2005July 26, 2005June 28, 2005May 23, 2005April 25, 2005April 4, 2005March 16, 2005February 23, 2005February 15, 2005February 9, 2005February 1, 2005January 25, 2005January 18, 2005January 11, 2005January 6, 2005December 15, 2004December 7, 2004November 30, 2004November 17, 2004November 10, 2004November 3, 2004October 26, 2004October 21, 2004October 11, 2004October 4, 2004
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