ATHENS — The Georgia Bulldogs finished 10th in final standings for the 2021 Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup released on Friday morning.
Georgia tallied 971.5 points during the 2020-21 academic year.
The Directors’ Cup is an all-sports measurement of college athletic programs developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution's finish in NCAA Championships.
During the 2020-21 year, 14 of Georgia’s sports qualified for NCAA Championship competition to contribute Directors’ Cup points. All of those sports recorded top-20 finishes at their respective national championships, including 10 top-10 efforts. The men’s indoor track & field and women’s outdoor track & field teams supplied Georgia’s top finish, with both placing third at the NCAAs. Additional top-20s included men’s swimming & diving (fourth), men’s tennis (fifth), women’s tennis (fifth), women’s indoor track & field (fifth), football (seventh), softball (seventh), women’s swimming & diving (eighth), men’s outdoor track & field (eighth), women’s basketball (17th), men’s golf (17th), gymnastics (17th) and women’s golf (18th). In addition, Georgia’s equestrian team captured the 2021 National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) national championship; however, Directors’ Cup points weren’t awarded since equestrian is not an NCAA-sponsored sport.
Georgia’s spring sports boosted the Bulldogs from No. 16 in the final winter edition of the standings to No. 10 in the final results.
Georgia has a long history of strong finishes in the Directors’ Cup. Since its inception in 1994, the Bulldogs have finished in the top-25 of the final standings in every year but one as outlined below. This year represents Georgia’s 11th top-10 finish, led by a runner-up showing during the 1998-99 school year. The 2020-21 competition resumed following a break in the Directors’ Cup during the 2019-20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Texas was the overall winner of the Directors’ Cup for 2020-21 after compiling 1252 points, followed by Stanford with 1195.75 points. Georgia was one of a nation-leading eight SEC teams to finish in the top 25 of the 2021 Directors’ Cup along with No. 5 Florida, No. 7 Alabama, No. 8 Arkansas, No. 12 Kentucky, No. 15 LSU, No. 19 Texas A&M and No. 22 Ole Miss.
Georgia’s finishes in the IMG Learfield Directors’ Cup include:
1994 – 21st
1995 – 14th
1996 – 11th
1997 – 28th
1998 – 7th
1999 – 2nd
2000 – 11th
2001 – 3rd
2002 – 8th
2003 – 15th
2004 – 5th
2005 – 7th
2006 – 9th
2007 – 12th
2008 – 10th
2009 – 18th
2010 – 20th
2011 – 20th
2012 – 18th
2013 – 10th
2014 – 16th
2015 – 14th
2016 – 15th
2017 – 15th
2018 – 8th
2019 – 21st
