by BY TOM MURPHY ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE , Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

But if the potential of a scholarship loss enters the conversation because of problematic APR performance, ears prick up. While Arkansas exceeded the APR benchmark score in 18 of its 19 athletic programs in the latest four-year scores released by the NCAA in May, the lone sport below the 925 benchmark score - men's basketball with an 888 - is in a trouble spot.

Scholarship losses can occur for a team with a score less than 925 when a player who is academically ineligible leaves the program before his eligibility expires, but do not appear imminent for the Razorbacks. However, they can't be ruled out for the next APR reporting period.

"Our most recent score we've added is of particular concern for us," Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long said.

The transition from the Stan Heath regime to John Pelphrey had its inherent personnel issues.

"Coaching changes, that's when things seem to go haywire at schools," said Barry Booker, the former Vanderbilt player and veteran SEC basketball television analyst.

However, Pelphrey has lost four of his signees since taking over in early 2007, including Montrell McDonald, Andre Clark and Brandon Moore from last year's team.

Since the APR measures how well schools retain athletes and keep them eligible, the departure of six seniors from the 2007-2008 team who did not graduate, and the loss of six more underclassmen, including Patrick Beverley, will pull Arkansas' score down for the next few years.

Arkansas officials will not address the eligibility status of departed players, citing student-privacy laws, but there are indications that Clark, McDonald and Moore left while eligible.

Asked if any of the departing players from last season left while ineligible, leaving the Razorbacks open to scholarship loss next season, Arkansas senior associate athletic director Jon Fagg said, "I won't make a specific comment on it, but you can probably draw conclusions from Jeff saying we don't anticipate anything at this time." But the fact remains, men's basketball is wading in murky APR waters.

The return of Michael Washington, who had originally declared for the NBA Draft, will assist Arkansas' APR, which Pelphrey recently addressed.

"We've got a lot of work already in place to try and handle some of these things, and getting him back helps towards trying to make the best of a tough situation," Pelphrey said.

Due to the below-standard 888 score, Arkansas had to prepare an academic improvement plan for submission to the NCAA.

The author of that plan, which was submitted and approved in January, was academic counselor Monica Jones, who is called the "APR Czar" in the hallways of the Broyles Athletic Center.

Jones said the return of men's basketball to the 925 benchmark is "definitely not a one-year fix." "It's each and every day coming in and doing the things that are asked of you," Jones said. "The students going to class, the staff being there to support the students and their academic endeavors, and making sure we're looking long-term on the type of students that we recruit.

"With the students we currently have, what is the best retention plan for them, what's going to make them more successful or the most successful that individual can be?" Arkansas' 888 APR score wasn't unexpected. School officials could project the score as it was accumulating, and they were not sitting by idly. While the NCAA can ask for academic approval plans for sports below the 925 mark, Long has his own approach.

"What Jeff has asked is that if a University of Arkansas team is at 935 that we submit an academic improvement plan to him, and he needs to know what needs to be done in order to accomplish getting that team at a 935 or above, who is responsible, and a timeline for getting it done," said Melissa Harwood-Rom, UA associate athletic director for academic support.

Because Arkansas football posted a 927 APR score in May, the football coaches are working with academic counselors Waga Damuni and Dann Kabala to put forth and implement an improvement plan.

Academic support is no longer study hall and an occasional briefing at Arkansas. The Razorbacks have a full-time staff of 11 academic support personnel, and every sport is overseen by a fulltime employee and not a graduate student as was sometimes the case in the past.

Fagg, who handles compliance, also has oversight of the department's approach in the realm of academics.

"We have what I would call a small-picture approach and then a big-picture approach," Fagg said.

"The small-picture approach is just making sure we approach study hall correctly and pay even closer attention to the studentathletes and their day-to-day classwork. An example might be making a grid of all of their tests. ... In the bigger picture is where we hope we're really going to make progress.

"Our idea is to go back and focus on graduation, so if you're making decisions that ultimately will lead to graduation, then eligibility will be a byproduct of that." Fagg said student-athletes also will receive positive feedback and be recognized in various settings, not just for obtaining grade-point thresholds, but also for making strides in academics.

"I call that an achievement model as opposed to a results model," Fagg said.

Ultimately, achieving and maintaining acceptable APR results boils down to a solid plan, recruiting the right kind of athletes and having the players and coaches on board with the system.

Asked if she believes Arkansas' coaches understand the importance of APR performance, Harwood-Rom replied, "Oh, definitely. That's something that goes with the culture that Jeff has established here, and Jon.

"Coaches are by nature competitive people. They're competitive in everything they do. And while I think that APR is just a part of that picture, I think they are very attuned to performance. I think they know what every person on their team is capable of accomplishing.

"What I see in coaches is, if the people on their teams are doing what they're capable of, then you have a happy coach. If they think that person needs to be making a 2.86, they're not going to be happy with a 2.8. That's what APR brings out in coaches."

Conference scores

SUN BELT - 914

ASU - 906

UALR - 962

Denver - 960

Fla. Atlantic - 938

Fla. International - 874

UL Monroe - 848

UL-Lafayette - 886

Middle Tennessee - 906

UNO - 868

North Texas - 923

S. Alabama - 916

Troy - 927

W. Kentucky - 972

SOUTHLAND - 898

Stephen F. Austin - 936

Nicholls State - 875

SE Louisiana - 866

McNeese State - 889

Northwestern State - 937

Central Arkansas - 882

Sam Houston State - 933

Texas A&M CC - 892

UT Arlington - 944

UTSA - 843

Texas State - 871

Lamar - 906

SWAC - 900

Alabama State - 916

Jackson State - 912

Prairie View A&M - 872

UAPB -907

Southern - 842

Texas Southern - 866

Mississippi Valley - 930

Alabama A&M - 926

Grambling State - 895

Alcorn State - 934

SOURCE NCAA.org

RESEARCH Jeff Krupsaw

This article was published 06/28/2009

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