July 3, 2018 By Jeff Shearer
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. - Auburn finished No. 18 in the 2017-18 Learfield Directors' Cup standings, the Tigers' fourth best finish in the competition's 24-year-history and highest in 13 years.
Auburn earned 856.25 points in the final standings, earning 114.5 in the fall, 355.75 in winter and 386 in spring. After the winter sports season, Auburn ranked No. 26 in the Directors' Cup standings, climbing eight spots in the final standings after an exceptional spring.
By finishing third at the NCAA Championships, men's golf earned 82.5 points for Auburn. Baseball contributed to Auburn's strong spring showing with 64 points for its No. 9 finish. Men's track & field totaled 61.5 for its No. 14 finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, while women's track & field added 58.5 for its No. 16 finish.
Women's golf added 57 for finishing No. 16. Softball, with 37.5, and women's tennis, with 25, also scored Directors' Cup points.
Scoring for Auburn in winter were men's basketball (No. 17, 50 points), women's gymnastics (No. 13, 59.25 points), women's swimming (No. 16, 58.5 points), men's swimming (No. 12, 64.5 points), men's indoor track (No. 8, 70.5 points), and women's indoor track (No. 20, 53 points).
In the fall, Auburn ranked No. 56 in the Directors' Cup standings after football earned 64.5 points for its No. 12 finish and women's soccer scored 50 points for finishing No. 17.
Auburn's all-time highest Directors' Cup finish was No. 12 in 2002-03. The Tigers finished No. 17 in 2004-05.
In 2017-18, 291 Division I colleges competed in the Learfield Directors' Cup. Stanford won with 1,442 points. UCLA finished second with 1,326.
Created in 1993, the Learfield Directors' Cup honors institutions' broad-based success in men's and women's sports. Each school is awarded points in 19 sports, four of which must be baseball, men's and women's basketball, and women's volleyball.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @jeff_shearer