UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State Athletics saw 94 student-athletes earn Academic All-Big Ten honors from its winter programs, the conference offices announced Wednesday afternoon Michael Artlip (men’s gymnastics) and Will Fleck (men’s gymnastics) both had perfect 4.0 GPAs.
To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selections, students must be on a varsity team (as verified by being on the official squad list as of March 1 for fall sports), have been enrolled full time at the institution for a minimum of 12 months, and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.
Among those on the list is sophomore Mitchell Messenbrink who is set to compete for an NCAA title this weekend with the wrestling team. Messenbrink boasts a 22-0 record including a win in his second Big Ten championship at 165. At last season’s NCAAs, he finished as national runner-up in the same weight class. This year, he has earned the top seed in the 165-weight class.
Women’s swimming and diving led the winter honorees for a seventh consecutive year, with 20 Academic All-Big Ten honorees.
Team-by-Team Honorees
Men's Basketball – 2
Women's Basketball – 4
Men's Gymnastics – 11
Women's Gymnastics – 11
Men’s Ice Hockey – 15
Women’s Ice Hockey –
Men’s Swim and Dive - 19
Women’s Swim and Dive – 20
Wrestling – 12
In 2023-24, the Penn State athletic department finished with 426 Academic All-Big Ten selections. The latest 94 honorees bring Penn State's total academic honorees to 8,961 since 1991-92.
Penn State Highest Winter Academic All-Big Ten Totals (3.0 GPA):
2021-22 – 123*
2020-21 – 106#
2023-24 – 103
2022-23 – 102
2024-25 – 94
2018-19 – 91
2019-20 – 82
2015-16 – 79
* - School record
# - alternative grading due to COVID-19 pandemic
Graduation Success Rates
Penn State student-athletes continue to register record-breaking graduation rates and perform well above their peers nationwide. The Nittany Lions posted a record-tying 93% NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) and 11 programs earned perfect 100% ratings. This is the eighth consecutive year the Nittany Lions posted a record or record-tying performance in the classroom, according to data reported by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
The NCAA's annual graduation rates report of Division I institutions across the nation revealed Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 93% to equal the school’s all-time record of 93%, which was set in the 2023 NCAA report. Nittany Lion students posted a 93% graduation rate compared to the 90% average for all Division I institutions for student-athletes entering from 2014-15 academic year through the 2017-18 academic year.
Penn State student-athletes have logged a Graduation Success Rate in the 88-93% range during each of the past 18 NCAA reports, improving from 88% in the 2015 report to a record-tying 93% report in the 2024 report.
Penn State Among the Nation's Most Comprehensive and Successful Athletic Programs
Under the leadership of Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics, Dr. Patrick Kraft, Penn State has one of the nation's most comprehensive and successful athletic programs, featuring 800 student-athletes across 31 varsity programs (16 men's, 15 women's). The Nittany Lions' 31 programs are tied for the fourth-highest number of sports sponsored by a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) institution.