Alabama A&M banned from postseason in all sports for 2016-17

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Alabama A&M has been banned from the postseason in all sports for the 2016-17 school year and the athletic department placed on probation for one year, the school announced today.

The punishments came after an NCAA review of Alabama A&M's Academic Performance Program data, the school said in a press release. The NCAA determined that documentation submitted by the school was insufficient to verify the Academic Performance Rate and academic eligibility of student-athletes for the 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years.

Alabama A&M's probation period began Jan. 18.

The NCAA implemented APRs in 2003. As described on the NCAA website, it "holds institutions accountable for the academic progress of their student-athletes through a team-based metric that accounts for the eligibility and retention of each student-athlete for each academic term."

Teams must have a 930 four-year average APR to take part in NCAA championships. Only two of Alabama A&M's 16 athletic programs - softball and men's golf - scored lower than 930 for the most recent results released by the NCAA (the period that ended with the 2013-14 school year).

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AAMU PRESS RELEASE...

NORMAL, Alabama -- During a review of Alabama A&M University's Academic Performance Program (APP) data by the NCAA Division I Committee on Academics Subcommittee on Data, subcommittee members determined the documentation submitted was insufficient to verify the Academic Performance Rate (APR) and the academic eligibility of student-athletes for the 2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14 academic years.

The NCAA is providing Alabama A&M University with additional time to resubmit the necessary documentation. In the meantime, effective January 18, 2016, the NCAA has placed AAMU athletics on one year probation and the AAMU athletic programs are ineligible for postseason competition beginning this fall (2016-17 championships).

"This is not a sanction. The post-season ban potentially can be lifted prior to the 2016-17 fall sports championships if the university corrects and re-submits the necessary data by August 15, 2016," said Bryan Hicks, Director of Athletics. "We are collaboratively working with the NCAA Division I Committee on Academics Subcommittee on Data, the Compliance Group and university administration to ensure each concern and question is fully addressed. We have also engaged a company with expertise in compliance certification, one that has assisted other SWAC institutions in a similar manner."

As required, all student-athletes were notified of the NCAA ruling and how it would apply to them. The Department of Athletics, the university Registrar's Office, faculty and staff and President Dr. Andrew Hugine Jr. are committed to resolving the issues revealed by the NCAA Division I Committee on Academics Subcommittee on Data as quickly as possible.

COURTESY ALABAMA A&M UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS