Stanford University Claims Fifth Consecutive Sears Directors' Cup

As of June 22, 1999

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. - Stanford University’s remarkable run in the Sears Directors’ Cup competition continues. Stanford claimed its unprecedented fifth consecutive Sears Directors’ Cup, the prestigious award presented annually by National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to the best overall collegiate athletics program in the country.

“The Sears Directors’ Cup competition is truly the measuring stick for college athletics programs and rewards universities for their commitment to achieving athletics excellence,” said Stanford University Athletics Director Ted Leland, who was on-hand to accept his university’s coveted award. “Stanford’s fifth win reflects the remarkable accomplishments and dedication of our student-athletes, coaches and support staff.”

The Cardinal clinched the Sears Directors’ Cup with a total of 970 points, an impressive 250 points ahead of runner-up, University of Georgia. Although Stanford won only one championship during the 1998-99 season in women’s tennis, Stanford’s fifth straight Sears Directors’ Cup win was fueled by its runner-up finishes in women’s swimming and diving, men’s swimming and diving, men’s soccer, men’s indoor track and field, water polo and men’s cross country.

Other sports placing in the top ten were third place showings by the baseball, women’s cross country and fencing teams, men’s gymnastics (6th), women’s golf (8th), women’s gymnastics (9th), men’s tennis (9th) and women’s volleyball (9th). Other sports scoring included men’s basketball (17th), wrestling (30th), women’s outdoor track and field (30th), women’s basketball (33rd) and women’s soccer (33rd).

“Sears proudly supports participation and excellence in college athletics,” said Mark Cohen, Sears executive vice president of marketing. “The Sears Directors’ Cup program rewards Stanford University for its continued dedication to achieving athletics and academic success, reflected in the university’s five consecutive wins.”

Each year, the Sears Directors’ Cup program, presented in partnership by Sears and NACDA, awards Waterford Crystal trophies to the top athletics programs in NCAA Division I, II, III and NAIA and presents a total of $100,000 in postgraduate academic scholarships to students in all four collegiate divisions. The Sears Directors’ Cup is the only national awards and academic scholarship program to recognize all NCAA and NAIA championship sports for both women’s and men’s athletics.

Developed as a joint effort between USA Today and NACDA, the Sears Directors’ Cup program is the only all-sports competition that recognizes the institution in each of the four categories with the best overall athletics program. The Sears Directors’ Cup is part of the Sears Collegiate Champions program which annually awards more than 2,200 conference and sport champion trophies and a quarter-of-a-million dollars in academic scholarships.

While Stanford took home the Sears Directors’ Cup for NCAA Division I competition, the winners in the other categories include: Division II - Adams State College [Col.]; Division III - Williams College [Mass.]; NAIA-Simon Fraser University [B.C.].

Every year, Sears and NACDA award $100,000 in postgraduate academic scholarships, five $5,000 scholarships in each division, to assist students who support their institution’s athletics departments. This includes managers, trainers, band members, cheerleaders, assistant coaches, sports information assistants, facility staff and academic support personnel. For each category, four outstanding recipients are selected by a nationwide nomination process, administered by NACDA, while the fifth recipient is a student at the institution that wins the Sears Directors’ Cup.

“The scholarship component of the Sears Directors’ Cup program, like the trophy component, aims to recognize and reward the best in the nation,” said Lee McElroy, chair of the Sears Directors’ Cup Committee and director of athletics at American University. “The distinguished scholarship winners represent the outstanding group of students who support their institutions both athletically and academically.”

This year, Sears and NACDA will award each of the top five institutions in all four divisions with Sears Directors’ Cup plaques, commemorating their program’s dedication to athletics greatness. This year’s runner-up institutions in the NCAA Division I include Georgia, Penn State, Florida and UCLA.

Of the 310 eligible colleges and universities in the NCAA Division I, a total of 255 (82 percent) scored points in the Sears Directors’ Cup competition. Complete final rankings on all of these institutions are available on NACDA’s home page at www.nacda.com.

NACDA, now in its 34th year, serves as the professional and educational association for more than 6,100 collegiate athletics directors, associates, assistants and conference administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Sears, Roebuck and Co. is a leading U.S. retailer of apparel, home and automotive products and services, with annual revenue of more than $41 billion. The company serves families throughout the country through 850 full-line department stores and more than 2,100 specialized retail locations nationwide. More information about the company is available on Sears Web site, www.sears.com.

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