28

A great education with big sport dominance. ‘Nuff said. The Tar Heels were number one in three major participation sports [men’s and women’s basketball and baseball]. And UNC kept on coming with the smaller sports, for a total of 12 ranked teams, including three other top-five finishers [women’s soccer (2), men’s track (5) and men’s tennis (5)]. We’re still looking for a downside in Chapel Hill.

44

Everything’s bigger in Texas, right? So it’s no surprise that the Longhorns hooked the competition in three of the four major participation sports: football (2), men’s basketball (10) and baseball (3). But a balanced attack of men’s and women’s sports teams that propelled Texas to second; eight men’s and six women’s teams were ranked. Texas reached the two spot twice, in football and men’s track, but had zero first-place finishes.

4

Stanford is one of the top academic institutions in the nation and was ranked in 16 sports, more than any other school. UNC and Texas beat the Cardinal because most of their rankings came in small participation sports. Their eight first-place finishes in a variety of sports [men’s and women’s swimming, men’s and women’s XC, men’s and women’s track, women’s tennis and volleyball] prove that Stanford is an equal opportunity butt-kicker.

25

The Bruins racked up a baker’s dozen of sport rankings, and an amazing 10 of those were top-10 rankings. But a 13th-place finish in men's XC held up UCLA’s title shot. Four third-place finishes [women's tennis, men's golf, women's soccer and softball] and three second-place finishes [men's basketball, women's track and women's golf] show the range of UCLA's balanced dominance.

8

If you need a partner for your country club’s weekend scramble, invite a Blue Devil. Duke was first in women’s golf, second in men’s golf and third in men’s tennis. The Blue Devils brought some more all-around thunder with four other top-three ranks: women’s basketball (2), men’s soccer (1), lacrosse (2) and women’s XC (3). Oh yeah, Duke is a really good school, too.

49

Third place finishes for football and men’s basketball highlight the Gators’ athletic accolades. On the women’s side, volleyball and tennis each finished second. Five of their 14 top teams, however, finished 12th or worse, keeping Florida from cracking the top five.

25

Seven truly is a lucky number for the Wolverines, as it’s their Elite 50 spot and football, baseball and men’s track rank. But Big Blue also took home the one spot for wrestling and a slew of number twos [softball, men’s tennis, hockey, women’s XC and men’s swimming].

27

The Trojans took down the granddaddy of them all: the number one ranking for football. And third place ranks for men’s and women’s track and women’s golf solidified their position in the top 10.

57

OSU was a mainstay in big sport title games last year, which helped football (4) and men’s basketball (6) produce nice finishes. Women’s basketball (5) gave the Buckeyes a little extra juice, but not enough to top rival Michigan on our list.

38

“Fight or flight” must be Wisconsin’s motto. While they thrive on full-contact sports like football (6), wrestling (6) and hockey (5), they’re also amazing runners, as proven by men’s track (6), men’s XC (2) and women’s XC (7).

23

Virginia is for lovers and, apparently, great students who love outdoor sports. The Cavaliers ruled lacrosse (1), men’s soccer (2), men’s tennis (2), baseball (4) and women’s soccer (7). Men’s swimming (12) was their only rep for indoor sports.

59

Seven of Georgia’s nine top-15 finishers were ranked in the top 10, which pushed them well into the top 15 overall. Men’s golf (1), women’s swimming (2), men’s tennis (4), women’s track (6) and football (10), highlighted this elite group.

19

Notre Dame’s strong academics won’t be enough to keep football ranked 12th next year, after this season’s dismal performance. But the strength of women’s soccer (1), men’s soccer (4), men’s XC (4), women’s tennis (4), women’s XC (6), and men’s tennis (8) may keep them near the top-15 overall.

21

It’s not surprising to find Cal near the top in swimming [men (4) and women (3)], considering Cali’s beautiful weather. Stellar academics make Cal a contender in other varsity sports, like football (8) women’s track (9), men’s soccer (9) and women’s golf (8).

96

The Lady Vols dominate at Tennessee. Women’s basketball (4), track (10), softball (1), swimming (15) and golf (12) account for their top-ranked teams. Thanks to men’s track (10) the guys weren’t shut out.

N/R

Only six schools not ranked by U.S. News made our list, and LSU was the best of the bunch. They dominated the major sports of football (9), women’s basketball (8), men’s track (9) and women’s track (12).

96

Auburn football (5) gave the Tigers a big boost, but the bodyhair-shaving swimmers helped out in a big way, with the men finishing (8) and women (7). The women’s track (14) and golf (11) teams chipped in to put the Tigers in our top 20.

38

A strong APR (986) plus a few solid seasons helped the Illini men’s basketball team to a top-five ranking. Add in top-performing individual sports [wrestling (8), women’s XC (5) and men’s tennis (11)], and Illinois finishes solidly at 18.

42

The Huskies’ volleyball team (5) provided the most points, but men’s basketball (11), softball (10), men’s XC (14), and men’s and women’s golf (10, 13, respectively) amassed a respectable total for the top-50 academic school.

48

Third in volleyball and fourth in women’s soccer and wrestling helped Penn State squeak into the top 20.

124

Imagine, an Arizona school is great at golf; the men finished 11th while the women finished 10th. The Sun Devils also rock on the diamond [baseball (14), softball (11)], on the court [women’s basketball (10)] and on the run [women’s XC (8)].

112

Back-to-back national titles for men’s track (8) and a fine baseball team (10) contributed the bulk of FSU’s points. Women’s soccer (8) and men’s tennis (15) added more, but not enough to break the tie at 22.

14

Phenomenal academics plus great athletic performance in wrestling (2), softball (4), women’s tennis (5), men’s swimming (5) and men’s soccer (14) put the Chicago-area Wildcats in a tie with Tallahassee-based FSU.

17

“You’re welcome.” Rice baseball players better get used to saying that. Their second-place rank vaulted the entire school into the top 25—the highest rank of any school with only one sport represented.

54

The Terps cracked the top half of our list by way of three team sports— men’s soccer (6), lacrosse (7) and women’s basketball (9).

62

On the track, the women finished 11th and the men 14th. In the pool, the women won out again at 11th, with the men at 15th. Ladies continue to rule at A&M, as they also finished sixth in soccer and ninth in softball.

23

At this top-25 academic university, men’s basketball (7) took home the most points, but lacrosse (5) was the highest ranked. Men’s XC (9) added some frosting on top.

71

The Golden Gophers are consistently inconsistent in areas where they excel: hockey (3), wrestling (5), men’s golf (9), women’s XC (10), volleyball (10), men’s swimming (11). Who can find a pattern in that?

N/R

Back-to-back National Titles and a respectable APR for the baseball team were enough to erase Oregon State’s non-ranking by U.S. News. They finished fifth, putting the Beavers at 29 overall.

67

Two top-15 finishes [baseball (6) and men’s soccer (15)] were all it took to put these Tigers [not to be confused with the 43,241 other teams named Tigers] in the Elite 50.

35

The Yellow Jackets baseball team put up big points with a ninth-place finish. Men’s golf (6) and women’s tennis (9) rounded out their scoring.

30

Men’s basketball didn’t quite make our top 15, but men’s soccer (3) did. The golf and tennis teams were also solid, the men finishing seventh and 10th, and the ladies finishing 14th and 15th, respectively.

19

Women’s basketball (15), golf (15) and tennis (12) racked up points. Baseball (8) provided the extra oomph for this top-20 academic university.

64

A few bad years for UConn’s men’s basketball team kept the Huskies off our sport-specific rankings. But the women (6) didn’t disappoint, helping UConn place 33rd.

35

Hockey (1) rules at BC, as they own the best program in the nation. Football (14), women’s soccer (15) and men’s basketball (12) also added some serious points.

N/R

The women’s basketball team’s performance (7) was enough to vault Rutgers to 36. Take that, Don Imus.

85

A top-10 rank in a large participation sport like men’s basketball (8) was all it took to get Kansas on the list.

96

The fearsome foursome for the Wildcats was a ranked women’s and men’s swim team [5 and 9, respectively], softball team (8) and men’s track team (13).

12

The lone Ivy League rep, Cornell made it by dominating wrestling (3), lacrosse (3), hockey (5) and a little thing called the U.S. News rankings (12).

91

’Bama softball finished sixth. The University of ’Bama finished 40th.

N/R

Cardinal football (11) gave Louisville a heavy dose of points for a large participation sport. Volleyball (14) added enough to tie for 41st overall.

91

The Cornhuskers’ volleyball team took home the ’06 National Championship, scored a nearly perfect APR (976) and ranked fourth. End result? A tie with Louisville.

67

Chalk one up for the men and women of SMU. The guys helped their cause with soccer (5) and the gals did their part swimming (14).

N/R

Portland capitalized on the strength of women’s soccer (5). This squad rocked a perfect APR of 1000 and a 2005 National Championship.

79

Academically minded runners define excellence at BYU: men’s XC (6), men’s track (11) and women’s XC (11).

75

Indiana men’s soccer (8) puts the school on the map, but they also get it done in the pool [women’s swimming (13), men’s swimming (14)] and on the mat [wrestling (15)].

N/R

If you know Cal State Fullerton sports, you know their baseball team (11), and that’s why the Titans are on our list.

79

XC dominates at Colorado. The women (4) are just a step better than the men (5).

71

Hockey (4) is far and away the Spartans’ best performing squad. But men’s basketball (14) and women’s XC (15) pushed them into the top 50.

75

Baylor just made the top 50 on the strength of their women’s sports [basketball (12) and softball (15)].