LOGAN, Utah ­ For the fifth year in a row, Utah State has led the Western Athletic Conference in number of academic all-league honorees as the Aggies landed 194 student-athletes on the academic all-WAC teams in 2009-10. USU just completed its fifth season in the WAC as it joined the league in July, 2005.

Overall, it is the 11th time in the last 12 years that Utah State has had the most academic all-league honorees as it led the Big West Conference in 2000 and 2002-05. In 2001, the Aggies ranked second in the Big West in academic selections.

"We have high academic expectations for our student-athletes and having the most academic all-conference selections for the fifth-straight year in the WAC shows they are meeting those expectations," said associate athletics director for student-athlete services Dr. Brian Evans. "This accolade is a testament to the emphasis the athletics department, coaches and students put toward academic achievement."

During 2009-10, Utah State had 194 student-athletes earn academic all-WAC honors to lead the league, while New Mexico State was second with 156, Boise State was third with 152, Fresno State was fourth with 145, and Idaho was fifth with 141. To qualify for the academic teams, student-athletes must post a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average and participate in at least 50 percent of the team's games.

Utah State's student-athletes traditionally rank among the best in the Western Athletic Conference with an 85 percent graduation success rate and a cumulative 3.11 grade-point average.

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