University of North Carolina Athletics
UNC Leads Division I Sears Directors' Cup Race As Fall Season Ends
January 10, 2001 | General
Jan. 10, 2001
CLEVELAND, OHIO - The University of North Carolina, the inaugural winner (1993-94) of the Division I Sears Directors' Cup, presented by the nation's athletics directors, concluded the fall season in the lead for the 2000-01 race.
UNC boasts 310 points, led by its national title in women's soccer. The Tar Heels also placed second in field hockey, fifth in men's soccer, 12th in women's cross country and 33rd in women's volleyball. The Sears Directors' Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. It is administered by NACDA and sponsored by Sears, Roebuck and Co.
Defending champion, Stanford, follows with 285 points. Wisconsin used its ranking of 24th in football to move into third with 281 points. Rounding out the top five are UCLA, fourth with 270 points, and Nebraska, fifth with 241 points.
Those point totals reflect the final fall standings and include the sports of women and men's cross country, field hockey, I-A and I-AA football, women's and men's soccer, women's volleyball and water polo. In addition to North Carolina, winning the national championships were Colorado in women's cross country, Arkansas in men's cross country, Old Dominion in field hockey, Oklahoma in I-A football, Georgia Southern in I-AA football, Connecticut in men's soccer, Nebraska in women's volleyball, and UCLA in men's water polo.
Points are awarded based on each institution's finish in up to 20 sports -- 10 for men and 10 for women. Each national champion receives 100 points.
North Carolina will retain the Sears Cup lead until the next standings are released on March 22, 2001. Those standings will reflect the first of three winter sports updates for the prize trophy.
