MSU Athletics Records Highest Director's Cup Finish Ever, 42nd

STARKVILLE, Miss. – A new standard continues to be set in Mississippi State Athletics. Following a remarkable 2017-18 athletic year that saw record grade point averages, a Final Four, a College World Series and multiple SEC Championships, Mississippi State recorded its highest Learfield Director's Cup finish ever, taking 42nd in the final Division I standings announced Saturday.

The 42nd placing eclipses the department's previous best of 44th in 2015-16. MSU accumulated 568.50 points in the 2017-18 standings, also representing its highest point total ever. The top three Director's Cup finishes in school history have occurred in the last three years, including No. 49 in 2016-17.

"It was a memorable year to be a Bulldog," MSU Director of Athletics John Cohen said. "I am very proud of our teams, coaches and student-athletes for their collective efforts in setting the highest of standards not only in their sports but also in the classroom and community."

The Learfield Directors' Cup was 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. Stanford, which offers 36 varsity sports, won the award.

Some of the team highlights of the 2017-18 MSU athletic year include:

Twelve sports advanced to the postseason – football, men's and women's indoor track and field, men's and women's basketball, men's golf, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's outdoor track and field, softball and baseball. Ten of those teams earned points toward MSU's final Director's Cup total.
State was the only school in the nation who won a bowl game and reached an NCAA Final Four – men's or women's – and the College World Series.
Seven squads finished in the Top 25 of their respective sports, including four in the Top 10: women's basketball (2), baseball (3), men's tennis (5), men's outdoor track and field (10), football (19), women's indoor track and field (20) and softball (23).
MSU claimed multiple SEC championships in a single athletic year for the first time since 1996. Matt Roberts, the SEC Coach of the Year, guided the men's tennis team to its first SEC Tournament championship since 1996. Vic Schaefer, the 2018 National Coach of the Year, led the women's basketball program to its first SEC regular season title with a perfect 30-0 regular season.
MSU produced four SEC Scholar-Athletes of the Year, representing the most in a single academic year in school history. Mallory Eubanks (soccer), Nuno Borges (men's tennis), Blair Schaefer (women's basketball) and Nicolas Quijera (men's track and field) all claimed the honor in their respective sports in 2017-18.
MSU student-athletes generated a school-record cumulative GPA for the combined fall and spring semesters with a 3.08.
After already producing a school-record fall GPA of 3.15, MSU student-athletes followed that up with a spring GPA of 3.01, the highest spring GPA on record.
For the second straight year, the women's basketball program reached the NCAA national championship game after winning a nation-best 37 games. It became the first SEC program to go undefeated in the SEC regular season in 20 years.
Baseball completed one of the most remarkable turnarounds in SEC history, reaching its 10th College World Series and finishing third nationally. MSU was ranked as high as No. 4 nationally in the final polls, representing the third-highest finish in program history.
Football won the TaxSlayer Bowl to cap a nine-win season and finished ranked No. 19 nationally. It was the third straight bowl victory for MSU, and State is one of only five SEC teams to go to a bowl every year this decade.
In addition to the SEC Tournament Championship, SEC Player of the Year Nuno Borges led the men's tennis team to its first NCAA quarterfinals appearance since 1998.
Men's basketball reached the NIT Final Four with a 25-12 overall record and a school-record 19-2 mark at home in Humphrey Coliseum.
Propelled by Anderson Peters and Nicolas Quijera taking first and second in the javelin, the men's track and field team finished 10^th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. It was the first time since 2007 that any school had athletes sweep the top two spots in javelin. MSU totaled 26 team points, representing its highest total since 1982.

MSU All-Time Director's Cup Finishes
Year: Finish (Points)
2017-18: 42^nd (568.5)
2016-17: 49^th (490.00)
2015-16: 44^th (496.00)
2014-15: 52^nd (478.00)
2013-14: 52^nd (426.00)
2012-13: 49^th (454.75)
2011-12: 80^th (237.50)
2010-11: 79^th (237.00)
2009-10: 114^th (151.00)
2008-09: 100^th (177.00)
2007-08: 109^th (171.50)
2006-07: 120^th (136.00)
2005-06: n/a
2004-05: 64^th (274.00)
2003-04: 67^th (255.00)
2002-03: 57^th (329.75)
2001-02: 63^rd (287.00)
2000-01: 80^th (216.00)
1999-2000: 51^st (321.00)
1998-99: t80th (100.00)
1997-98: t77th (100.00)
1996-97: 98^th (144.50)
1995-96: 106^th (123.00)
1994-95: 87^th (154.00)
1993-94: 108^th (106.00)

Mississippi State University Athletics

MSU Athletics Records Highest Director's Cup Finish Ever, 42nd

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Players Mentioned

Nuno Borges

Mallory Eubanks

Anderson Peters

Nicolas Quijera

Blair Schaefer

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