Penn State athletics among top in the nation after fall sports season

Penn State has always been known for being one of the most well-rounded athletic departments in the country.  The Learfield Directors’ Cup is a competition that ranks the best athletic departments based on their finish in NCAA-sanctioned sports. Revealed this week, Penn State athletics is once again one of the top institutions in the country after the conclusion of the fall sports calendar.

Penn State athletics sits No. 9 after fall season

Penn State athletics earned 271 points in the Learfield Directors’ Cup throughout the 2023 fall season. The highest point-getter was from the women’s soccer program, receiving 73 points after its run to the NCAA Quarterfinals. Women’s volleyball contributed 64 points after advancing to the NCAA Regional Semifinal under head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley.

Penn State football added 63 points with its No. 13 finish in the AP Poll and an appearance in the Chic-fil-A Peach Bowl. The Women’s and men’s cross-country teams added 43 and 28 points, respectively.

What is the Directors’ Cup?

The Directors’ Cup began during the 1993-94 season as a way to determine which colleges and universities had the most success in collegiate athletics. Points are awarded based on the order of finish in the various sports sponsored by the NCAA. If your school is the champion of a sport, it receives 100 points, second 90 points, third, 85 points, and fourth 80 points. After the top four, the point system depends on how many compete in the competition.

For example, last season men’s hockey advanced one round in the 16-team NCAA Tournament and was awarded 60 points. Penn State basketball also advanced one round, but was awarded 50 points because it was a 64-team tournament.

The scoring structure has received criticism over the years because all the sports are awarded the same number of points. Stanford has won 26 cups, Texas two, and North Carolina one in its entire history. Part of the reason is Stanford competes in 36 sports, while other schools don’t have the resources to do so. This results in the Cardinal commonly finishing among the top four in sports that only have 20 to 30 teams total.

Penn State has a history of success in the Directors’ Cup

Like Stanford, Penn State athletics participates and sponsors a lot of the smaller NCAA sports. Currently, the athletic department sponsors 31 varsity programs, which is tied for the fourth highest among FBS institutions.

Penn State has finished in the top ten of the Directors’ Cup 12 times, which is tied for the ninth most since the cup was created. The highest was a third-place finish in the 1998-99 standings. Last season, Penn State athletics finished with 986 points and No. 15 out of 298 schools in the standings.

Thank you for reading Basic Blues Nation, the market’s fastest-growing Penn State sports outlet. Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter for the latest news and insights on your favorite Penn State athletics. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email us at [email protected] or direct message us on our social media. Also, be sure to check out our new site shop. It’s due to your support that we can proudly claim a readership of over 3.5 million in our first year of operation.