Here's a good illustration of how statistics can lie. According to the formula designed by the NCAA, the Vols graduation rate for the 1991-92 class was an awful 11%. Indeed, of the 18 student-athletes entering Tennessee that year, only two graduated within the six-year NCAA limit. That figure doesn't tell the whole story, though. According to Carmen Tegano, Tennessees assistant athletic director for student life, 10 of the 18 1991-92 freshmen were on NFL rosters at the start of the season. More importantly, four of those 10 players graduated with their degrees after the NCAAs six-year cut off. In fact, six of the 18 (33%) student-athletes in Tennessees entering 1991-92 football class have received their college degrees. Of the rest, six are playing in the NFL and one is playing professional baseball. So one could say that six have graduated and several others are gainfully employed.
Tennessee's seemingly low graduation rate actually says more about how the NCAA measures graduation rates and the danger of relying on single year statistics than about the academic commitment of the school's football program. The NCAA graduation rates count only those student-athletes who enter as freshmen receiving athletic grants-in-aid and who graduate within six years. Athletes who transfer from the program, even if they graduate from other schools, count against the graduation rate. At the same time, athletes who transfer into the program and get their degrees do not count in favor of the graduation rate. Look at the academic performance of Tennessee's entering classes for 1992-93 and 1993-94. In the fall of 1992, according to Tegano, 22 recruited freshman joined the football team. According to NCAA criteria, 13 players (59%) graduated. That figure, however, is misleading. While those 13 students were working toward graduation, five other student-athletes transferred into the program. Four of them graduated. So, counting the 1992-93 class and transfers, 17 of 27 (63%) players finishing their athletic eligibility at UT graduated. And it gets better. For the 1993-94 freshman class, coach Phillip Fulmer's first at UT, 12 of 17 (70.5%) graduated according to NCAA measurement. Of the five players who did not graduate from UT, three had transferred to other schools where they did graduate. Also, another three players transferred into Tennessee, and they graduated. So, of the 20 student-athletes entering college in 1993-94 who either began or ended their collegiate football careers at Tennessee, 18 of 20, exactly 90%, graduated from college. And that's a long way from 11%.
