UND Football collects fourth consecutive All-Academic Award

(KNOX) – For the fourth consecutive year, the University of North Dakota has earned the Missouri Valley Football Conference All-Academic Award, the league offices announced Monday. The Fighting Hawks have won the award each year since joining the conference in 2020.

“Congratulations again to our student-athletes, coaches, support staff and Coach Schweigert for balancing the rigor of Division I football with academic performance,” said Athletic Director Bill Chaves. “This achievement coupled with UND being one of just seven FCS schools (of 128) to make the playoffs in four of the past five years is tremendous – this is the definition of being student-athletes!”

In 2005, the MVFC introduced the All-Academic Award to recognize team academic achievement. The award is based on the average student-athlete grade-point average for the previous academic year. GPA calculations include all student-athletes who compete, practice or receive academic aid during the academic year.

UND led the MVFC with a 3.362 grade point average in 2023-24, trailed by Indiana State (3.256), North Dakota State (3.230) and Youngstown State (3.223). North Dakota’s grade-point average of 3.362 currently sits third all-time in the history of the award. The Fighting Hawks also have the top three GPA’s all-time in the conference.

Top-Five MVFC Team GPA’s All-Time
1. North Dakota – 3.459 (2022-23)
2. North Dakota – 3.383 (2020-21)
3. North Dakota – 3.362 (2023-24)
4. Southern Illinois – 3.310 (2020-21)
5. Indiana State – 3.304 (2022-23)

“We are proud of our team’s effort put forth in the classroom while balancing the time demands of Division I football,” Coach Schweigert said. “This accomplishment is the result of the players commitment to academic excellence along with outstanding support from academic services personnel and our coaching staff.”

The UND football program had 51 student-athletes with a GPA this past term of 3.5 or higher, a mark which led the entire North Dakota athletic department. This spring semester marked the 32nd consecutive semester with an overall department GPA of 3.0 or higher. The football team had 17 players on the UND President’s Honor Roll, while 13 players also represented the team on the UND Dean’s List. Three North Dakota student-athletes were named to the 2023 MVFC All-Academic Teams.