Athletics

NC State’s long history of athletic achievement began simply enough. The university’s first football team played just one game in the 1892 season on a field marked off with a plow. Since then, NC State has competed at the highest level of college athletics, winning two NCAA national championships, two AIAW titles and four other national championships. The university has produced Olympic medalists in swimming, as well as dozens of individual NCAA and AIAW national champions in a variety of sports. NC State competes in 23 intercollegiate varsity sports and is a founding member of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Under coach Mark Gottfried, the men’s basketball team was a preseason ACC favorite for the first time since the 1974–75 season, and its No. 6 ranking was the program’s highest since 1983. Six teams finished last season ranked in the national top 25: men’s cross-country, baseball, gymnastics, men’s basketball, women’s cross-country and women’s golf. The baseball team capped an exciting season with an appearance at the Super Regional, baseball’s version of the Sweet Sixteen.

Under Athletics Director Debbie Yow — who was named one of the top 20 most influential individuals in intercollegiate sports by SportsBusiness Journal — NC State’s athletics program ranked 37th in the national Director’s Cup competitive standings in 2012, up 52 spots from 2010.

NC State is experiencing a transformation of its athletics program, achieving new levels of success in competition and in the classroom. Over the last year a record 381 student-athletes were named NC State scholar athletes (3.0 GPA or higher), a record 186 student-athletes were Dean’s List honorees, a record 10 student- athletes were named Academic All-Americans and a record 69 student-athletes were named to conference all- academic teams. In addition, three NC State student-athletes were awarded ACC postgraduate scholarships — the highest number of honorees among all ACC schools.