Re: APR Semesters Or Quarters

[Jon Macomber]

That is true - the APR only asks if you are in good standing or not.  But the quarter system makes it more difficult to stay in good standing - and that is part of UC's problem.

In order to participate in pro camps/try-outs, many players leave after the season is over.  If UC was on semesters, they would be in the home stretch of the academic year, instead of having to come back for another whole quarter - so many just skip it and end up a few credit hours short of graduation.

If UC was on the semester system White and Jihad probably would have stayed eligible last year for the rest of the NIT.

And I suspect many of the non-graduates of previous years who were 1 or 2 classes short would have been able to finish up and save everyone a lot of grief.  Not the only reason for a poor graduation rates, but probably the single biggest factor.  Athletic programs are geared to make sure players stay eligible and make the classes they need.  Duke had some attention for the way they were shuttling players through a 3-year graduation schedule.  UC did something similar with Field Williams, Leonard Stokes, and another player or two. But they almost had to do that when you consider fewer classes during the season, and often no final spring quarter at all.

And I'm not suggesting the players get a free pass just for taking classes and it's all a product of scheduling.  It just makes sense to load up classes over the summer so players can take fewer classes during the season.  It's up to the players to do the work and earn the grades.  But the "system" shouldn't have good players make difficult decisions regarding professional employment.  It has a tendency to become a numbers game, and the best thing for the kids often become secondary.  Which is a shame.  

I don't know the answer to this though - If a player graduates after Winter quarter (early March), can they still play in the post-season as some type of "recent graduate"?  Or would their collegiate eligibility end right away?  I can't think of an example or recent case.  If they can play - it would behoove UC and the players to try and make winter quarter of senior years the last (graduating) quarter.  More work for the players, and maybe impossible for JUCOs, but it would be a win-win for everyone.

And I'm not saying the quarter system coupled with the possibility of early pro-camps explains away the past poor graduation rates.  There is more to the equation, and most come down to the individual player and their choices.  Some are only there for bball and when it's over they're gone - no matter what.  That is wrong and must be addressed (like the current scholarship sanctions).  There just has to be a better way to realistically address this problem, and it is a problem.  Everyone wants them to graduate; how can the school do what's best for a kid without being penalized?

It's also worth mentioning that the quarter system also hurts football attendance - UC often plays a third of their games before the first day of classes.  No doubt this has been somewhat responsible for the traditionally low student interest/awareness (a traditionally bad record doesn't help).

As a student I as always liked the quarter system, but it wrecks havoc on the athletic system - especially when most other schools are on semesters.  

So yes, the APR is just a number and doesn't necessarily discriminate between semesters/quarters - but there are fundamental differences that put schools with quarter systems like UC at a disadvantage - especially with players good enough to play professionally.  No system is perfect, and UC just has to learn to work within those guidelines.


Jon

(wow that was longer than I thought)


----- Original Message ----- 
From: <address@hidden>
To: <address@hidden>
Sent: Tuesday, January 02, 2007 11:09 PM
Subject: [UC Basketball] APR Semesters Or Quarters


> The APR score doesn't matter whether it's semesters or quarters.
>
> There are just 78 possible "points" with quarters and 52 "points" with semesters.
>
> The 925 APR translates to 72 points (out of 78) on a quarter system.
>
> The sidebar in the Enquirer article shows UC scored 223 points out of 266 (possible) over 3 years.
>
> Tom Gray, UC fan since 1958