NACDA Directors' Cup

{{See also|Capital One Cup}}{{short description|Athletics award for collegiate teams}}

{{Infobox sports award

|name=NACDA Directors' Cup

|most_awards=NCAA Division I: Stanford Cardinal (26)
NCAA Division II: Grand Valley State Lakers (15)
NCAA Division III: Williams Ephs (22)
NAIA: Azusa Pacific Cougars (8)
NJCAA: Iowa Central Tritons (5)

|presenter=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics

|mostrecent=NCAA Division I: Texas Longhorns
NCAA Division II: Grand Valley State Lakers
NCAA Division III: Johns Hopkins Blue Jays
NAIA: Cumberlands Patriots
NJCAA: Iowa Western Reivers

|website=https://thedirectorscup.com/

|image=Directors' Cup Logo (2021).jpg

|awardedfor=The most successful overall athletic program in each division of collegiate sports.}}

The NACDA Directors' Cup, known for sponsorship reasons as the NACDA Learfield Directors' Cup or simply as the Directors' Cup, is an award given annually by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics to the colleges and universities in the United States{{Efn|The three Canadian universities which compete in the NCAA or NAIA, including Simon Fraser University, University of British Columbia, and University of Victoria, are also eligible for the award.|group=canada}} with the most success in collegiate athletics. Points for the NACDA Directors' Cup are based on order of finish in various championships sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) or, in the case of Division I Football, media-based polls. A first-place finish in a sport earns 100 points, second place 90 points, third place 85 points, fourth place 80 points, and lesser values for lower finishes (exact numbers beyond fourth place depend on the sport and division.[https://nacda.com/documents/2018/6/14/_nacda_directorscup_2012_13_misc_non_event__dcscoring.pdf chart]{{Cite web|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/6/14/_nacda_directorscup_2012_13_misc_non_event__dcscoring.pdf|title=Directors' Cup Bracket and Non-Bracket Sports Scoring (PDF)|website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics|language=en|access-date=2020-01-08}}

The award originated in 1993 and was presented to NCAA Division I schools only. In 1995, it was extended to Division II, Division III, and NAIA schools as well, then extended further to junior colleges in 2011 based on standings from the NATYCAA Cup.{{Cite web|date=2008-09-29|title=About|url=https://thedirectorscup.com/about/|access-date=2021-08-06|website=Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|title=Daktronics Cup Past Winners|url=https://nacda.com/sports/2018/8/30/natycaa-cup-past-winners.aspx|access-date=2021-08-06|website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics|language=en}} Each division receives its own award.

The physical award is a Waterford Crystal trophy. Prior to 2003, the sponsor of the NACDA Directors' Cup was retail merchandiser Sears, and the award was known as the Sears Cup. Beginning in the 2003–04 season, the sponsor was the United States Sports Academy. In 2007–08, Learfield Sports assumed the sponsorship of the Directors' Cup. Learfield Sports rebranded to Learfield IMG College in 2016 and to simply Learfield in 2021.{{Notelist|group=canada}}

History

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill won the award in its inaugural year, but then Stanford University won the Division I award for 25 straight years until the streak was broken in 2020–21 by the University of Texas. Texas repeated in 2022, Stanford regained the cup in 2023, and Texas won again in 2024.

In Division II, UC Davis won six of the first eight awards, but its athletic program moved to Division I in 2003 and Grand Valley State has won 16 of the 19 awards since as of 2024 (the title went unawarded for two years due to COVID-19). The only other current Division II member with an award is 1999 winner Adams State. All other Division II winners (Bakersfield, California Baptist, and Grand Canyon) are now members of Division I.

Williams College has had by far the most success in Division III, having won the Cup 22 of the 27 times it has been awarded for that division. The only other D-III member with more than one Cup is 2023 and 2024 winner Johns Hopkins.

The NAIA division was dominated by Simon Fraser University of British Columbia in its early years, but in 2002, SFU transferred most of its sports programs to Canada's college athletics federation, then known as Canadian Interuniversity Sport and now as U Sports. SFU left U Sports in 2011 and has since become a full member of NCAA Division II. From 2004–05 to 2011–12, Azusa Pacific University assumed the mantle at the NAIA level, winning eight consecutive championships before moving to NCAA Division II in the 2012–13 season. Oklahoma City University has been the most successful school since that year, with three Directors' Cups in the 2010s and four overall.

For two-year colleges, Iowa Central Community College has been the most successful school, winning five of the 10 titles.

Scoring system

  • NCAA Division I: Counts top 19 sports at each school with the following breakdowns:{{Cite web|title=LEARFIELD Directors' Cup Scoring Structure|url=https://nacda.com/sports/2018/7/17/directorscup-nacda-directorscup-scoring-html.aspx|access-date=2021-08-06|website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics|language=en}}
  • Four of which must be baseball, men's basketball, women's basketball and women's volleyball
  • The next highest 15 sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender, will be used in the standings (except men's water polo){{Efn|Men's water polo is the only sport with an NCAA championship for which NACDA does not award any points.|name=water polo|group=water polo}}
  • For FBS Football: the top 25 teams are awarded points based on their final rank in the Coaches Poll. 26th place is considered a tie between every non-ranked bowl winner, and the next available rank is considered a tie between every non-ranked bowl loser.
  • NCAA Division II: Counts top 15 sports at each school with the following breakdowns:
  • Four of which must be baseball, men's basketball, women's basketball and women's volleyball
  • The next highest 11 sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender, will be used in the standings (except men's water polo){{Efn|name=water polo|group=water polo}}
  • NCAA Division III: Counts top 18 sports at each school with the following breakdowns:
  • Four of which must be men's basketball, men's soccer, women's basketball and women's soccer
  • The next highest 14 sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender, will be used in the standings (except men's water polo){{Efn|name=water polo|group=water polo}}
  • NAIA: Counts top 13 sports at each school with the following breakdowns:
  • Four of which must be men's basketball, men's soccer, women's basketball and women's volleyball
  • The next highest 9 sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender, will be used in the standings
  • Junior/Community Colleges: The highest scoring institution in the NATYCAA Cup standings among the NJCAA Scholarship, NJCAA Non-Scholarship, and State Associations divisions will be declared the Directors' Cup winner.

{{Notelist|group=water polo}}

= Tiebreaking =

If two teams have the same number of points at the end of the season, the tiebreaker is the number of national championships won. If still tied the next tiebreaker is the number of second-place finishes, then third-place finishes and so on until one team wins. The tiebreaker is only used for first place.

= Criticism =

The scoring structure has been criticized for several reasons, especially due to the number of sports counted per division. Although the number of sports counted in the scoring is based on the average number of sports sponsored by a team in that division, certain schools offer many more or many fewer sports than that. For example, Stanford's dominance at the Division I level is partially attributable to them sponsoring 36 sports teams (of which 31 are NCAA sports), the most in Division I outside of the Ivy League, which does not grant athletic scholarships, and Ohio State, which sponsors 37 sports teams (of which 32 are NCAA sports). This gives Stanford more opportunities to win titles than most other schools, especially considering that some of the sports Stanford sponsors are not played by very many other schools (5 out of 31 have championship fields under 20 teams, and one [namely men's gymnastics] has fewer than 20 sponsoring schools), all but guaranteeing a substantial number of points for the few schools that do (NACDA awards significantly fewer points for teams that finish lower than fourth in sports with less competition, but the top four teams (except in 8-team and 4-team bracket sports) always receive 100, 90, 85, and 80 points respectively). Ohio State, which sponsors teams in more NCAA sports than Stanford (5 of which, like Stanford, have championship fields under 20 teams) has never won the Cup (Ohio State has finished second 3 times, third twice, fourth 3 times, and in the top ten 7 more times).

Another common criticism is the fact that four sports are required to be counted despite some schools not sponsoring those sports. While every Division I school sponsors men's basketball, and all but two (The Citadel and VMI) sponsor women's basketball, a significant number of D-I schools do not sponsor the other two "mandatory counters" of baseball and women's volleyball. In the 2023–24 school year, 21 schools did not sponsor women's volleyball and 53 did not sponsor baseball, giving those schools an inherent disadvantage as they must count a sport for which they are guaranteed to receive no points.

Other reasons for criticism are over the way NACDA awards points in "National Collegiate" sports, which are sports where Division I, II, and III schools all compete directly against each other instead of being separated. The NCAA considers National Collegiate championships equivalent to Division I, therefore Division III schools are allowed to grant athletic scholarships in those sports, but NACDA counts points earned in National Collegiate competitions toward whatever division a team primarily competes in. Similarly, several otherwise Division III schools compete in Division I for men's ice hockey (despite Division III having its own ice hockey tournament), so there have been instances where two different Division III teams earn 100 points in the sport.{{Cite web |title=Apr17D3LSDC (PDF) |url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/7/19/Apr17D3LSDC.pdf?id=1956 |access-date=2023-01-02 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en}}

Multiple suggestions have been made to change the scoring system. Some of the most popular of these include making each sport worth a proportional number of points to the number of schools that compete in it, to get rid of the limit on the number of sports counted, then divide a school's total points by the number of sports it sponsors, and to count the median number of teams per division instead of the average (the median number of teams at a Division I school, for example, is 16, which is substantially lower than the 19 sports that are currently counted). However, NACDA has never seriously considered any of these suggestions.

= Past scoring system =

From the creation of the award until the 2017–18 season the scoring was as follows:{{Cite web |title=Clarification - Learfield Directors' Cup Scoring Changes |url=http://www.nacda.com/sports/directorscup/spec-rel/050417aaf.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180830073308/http://www.nacda.com/sports/directorscup/spec-rel/050417aaf.html |archive-date=2018-08-30}}

  • NCAA Division I: Counted up to 20 total sports at each school, with a maximum of 10 sports counted for each gender
  • NCAA Division II: Counted up to 14 total sports at each school, with a maximum of 7 sports counted for each gender
  • NCAA Division III: Counted up to 18 total sports at each school, with a maximum of 9 sports counted for each gender
  • NAIA: Counted up to 12 total sports at each school, with a maximum of 6 sports counted for each gender
  • Junior/Community Colleges: Same as current

Past winners

  • Results for years and schools shown in italics represent current standings and are not yet final.
  • These results are for the "final" standings, calculated after spring sports end.

=NCAA Division I=

class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
style="width:10%" | Year

! style="width:9%" | First

! style="width:9%" | Second

! style="width:9%" | Third

! style="width:9%" | Fourth

! style="width:9%" | Fifth

! style="width:9%" | Sixth

! style="width:9%" | Seventh

! style="width:9%" | Eighth

! style="width:9%" | Ninth

! style="width:9%" | Tenth

1993–94{{Cite web|title=1993-94 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9394D1Final.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110906194707/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9394D1Final.PDF|archive-date=2011-09-06}}

| North Carolina

| Stanford

| UCLA

| Florida

| Penn State

| Arizona

| Texas

| USC

| Michigan

| Arizona State

1994–95{{Cite web|title=1994-95 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9495D1Final.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110906194753/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9495D1Final.PDF|archive-date=2011-09-06}}

| Stanford

| North Carolina

| UCLA

| Arizona

| Florida

| USC

| Michigan

| Penn State

| Nebraska

| Texas

1995–96{{Cite web|title=1995-96 D1 Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com:80/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/9596final.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160417213956/http://grfx.cstv.com:80/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/9596final.pdf|archive-date=2016-04-17}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| Florida

| Texas

| Michigan

| North Carolina

| Arizona

| Nebraska

| Penn State

| USC

1996–97{{Cite web|title=1996-97 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9697D1Final.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110906194734/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9697D1Final.PDF|archive-date=2011-09-06}}

| Stanford

| North Carolina

| UCLA

| Nebraska

| Florida

| Arizona

| Texas

| Ohio State

| USC

| LSU

1997–98{{Cite web|title=1997-98 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9798D1Final.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110906194449/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9798D1Final.PDF|archive-date=2011-09-06}}

| Stanford

| colspan="2" | (tie) Florida, North Carolina

| UCLA

| Michigan

| Arizona

| Georgia

| Washington

| Nebraska

| LSU

1998–99{{Cite web|title=1998-99 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9899D1Final.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130717234950/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9899D1Final.PDF|archive-date=2013-07-17}}

| Stanford

| Georgia

| Penn State

| Florida

| UCLA

| Michigan

| Duke

| Virginia

| colspan="2" | (tie) Arizona, USC

1999–2000{{Cite web|title=1999-2000 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9900D1Final.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130717234954/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/9900D1Final.PDF|archive-date=2013-07-17}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| Michigan

| Penn State

| North Carolina

| Nebraska

| Florida

| Arizona

| Texas

| LSU

2000–01{{Cite web|title=2000-01 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/0001D1FinalStn.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130717234806/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/0001D1FinalStn.PDF|archive-date=2013-07-17}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| Georgia

| Michigan

| Arizona

| Ohio State

| Florida

| USC

| Arizona State

| Penn State

2001–02{{Cite web|title=2001-02 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/0102Div1FinalStand.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006162011/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/0102Div1FinalStand.pdf|archive-date=2008-10-06}}

| Stanford

| Texas

| Florida

| North Carolina

| UCLA

| Michigan

| Minnesota

| Georgia

| Arizona

| LSU

2002–03{{Cite web|title=2002-03 D1 Final Standings|url=http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/0203D1FinalStandings.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090711015505/http://graphics.fansonly.com/confs/nacda/graphics/0203D1FinalStandings.pdf|archive-date=2009-07-11}}

| Stanford

| Texas

| Ohio State

| Michigan

| Penn State

| UCLA

| Florida

| North Carolina

| California

| Arizona State

2003–04{{Cite web|title=2003-04 D1 Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/8/3/7198__directorscup__D1FinalStand.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702183504/https://nacda.com/documents/2018/8/3/7198__directorscup__D1FinalStand.pdf|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

| Stanford

| Michigan

| UCLA

| Ohio State

| Georgia

| Florida

| North Carolina

| Washington

| California

| Texas

2004–05{{Cite web|title=2004-05 D1 Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/8/3/6608__directorscup__0405D1FinalStand.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702182532/https://nacda.com/documents/2018/8/3/6608__directorscup__0405D1FinalStand.pdf|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

| Stanford

| Texas

| UCLA

| Michigan

| Duke

| Florida

| Georgia

| Tennessee

| North Carolina

| USC

2005–06{{Cite web|title=2005-06 D1 Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/8/3/5973__directorscup__0506D1FinalStand.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702181823/https://nacda.com/documents/2018/8/3/5973__directorscup__0506D1FinalStand.pdf|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| Texas

| North Carolina

| Florida

| Notre Dame

| California

| Duke

| Georgia

| USC

2006–07{{Cite web|title=2006-07 D1 Final Standings|url=http://www.cstv.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/finald1standings|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622004932/http://www.cstv.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/finald1standings|archive-date=2011-06-22}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| North Carolina

| Michigan

| USC

| Florida

| Tennessee

| Texas

| California

| Arizona State

2007–08{{Cite web|title=2007-08 D1 Final Standings|url=http://www.nacda.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/FinalD1|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718154213/http://www.nacda.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/FinalD1|archive-date=2011-07-18}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| Michigan

| Arizona State

| Texas

| Florida

| California

| LSU

| Penn State

| Georgia

2008–09{{Cite web|title=2008-09 D1 Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/june29d1.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329222948/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/june29d1.pdf|archive-date=2015-03-29}}

| Stanford

| North Carolina

| Florida

| USC

| Michigan

| Texas

| California

| Virginia

| LSU

| Ohio State

2009–10{{Cite web|title=2009-10 D1 Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/d1final.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150306080625/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/d1final.pdf|archive-date=2015-03-06}}

| Stanford

| Florida

| Virginia

| UCLA

| Florida State

| Texas A&M

| North Carolina

| Ohio State

| California

| Duke

2010–11{{Cite web|title=2010-11 D1 Final Standings|url=http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/finald1standings10-11-2.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150108233731/http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/finald1standings10-11-2.pdf|archive-date=2015-01-08}}

| Stanford

| Ohio State

| California

| Florida

| Duke

| North Carolina

| Virginia

| Texas A&M

| Florida State

| Oklahoma

2011–12{{Cite web|title=2011-12 D1 Final Standings|url=http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/finalD1-june28-2012.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151010195537/http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/finalD1-june28-2012.pdf|archive-date=2015-10-10}}

| Stanford

| Florida

| UCLA

| Ohio State

| Florida State

| Texas

| USC

| North Carolina

| Texas A&M

| Michigan

2012–13{{Cite web|title=2012-13 D1 Final Standings|url=http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/June27release.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150326155612/http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/June27release.pdf|archive-date=2015-03-26}}

| Stanford

| Florida

| UCLA

| Michigan

| Texas A&M

| Penn State

| Oklahoma

| North Carolina

| Notre Dame

| Georgia

2013–14{{Cite web|title=2013-14 D1 Final Standings|url=http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/june26stand.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150419151916/http://thedirectorscup.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/june26stand.pdf|archive-date=2015-04-19}}

| Stanford

| Florida

| Notre Dame

| Virginia

| Penn State

| Texas

| UCLA

| USC

| Duke

| Texas A&M

2014–15{{Cite web|title=2014-15 D1 Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2014-15/misc_non_event/DIJune25.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208010228/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2014-15/misc_non_event/DIJune25.pdf|archive-date=2015-12-08}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| USC

| Florida

| North Carolina

| Virginia

| Ohio State

| Penn State

| Texas

| Notre Dame

2015–16{{Cite web|title=2015-16 D1 Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2015-16/misc_non_event/DIJune14Standings.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161126214536/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2015-16/misc_non_event/DIJune14Standings.pdf|archive-date=2016-11-26}}

| Stanford

| Ohio State

| Michigan

| USC

| Florida

| UCLA

| North Carolina

| Virginia

| Texas

| Oregon

2016–17{{Cite web|title=2016-17 D1 Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2017/7/5/_nacda_directorscup_2016_17_misc_non_event__D1final2017.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702183315/https://nacda.com/documents/2018/7/19//D1final2017.pdf?id=1876|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

| Stanford

| Ohio State

| Florida

| USC

| North Carolina

| Michigan

| Texas

| Penn State

| Oregon

| Kentucky

2017–18{{Cite web|title=2017-18 D1 Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2017-18/misc_non_event/June29overallDI.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831203332/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2017-18/misc_non_event/June29overallDI.pdf|archive-date=31 August 2018}}

| Stanford

| UCLA

| Florida

| USC

| Texas

| Michigan

| Ohio State

| Georgia

| Florida State

| Texas A&M

2018–19{{Cite web|title=2018-19 D1 Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2019/6/27/June28DIOverall.pdf?id=3678|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108021816/https://nacda.com/documents/2019/6/27//June28DIOverall.pdf?id=3678|archive-date=2020-11-08|access-date=2021-07-02|website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics|language=en}}

| Stanford

| Michigan

| Florida

| Texas

| USC

| UCLA

| Florida State

| Virginia

| Duke

| North Carolina

2019–20

| colspan="10" |Not awarded because of the COVID-19 pandemic{{Cite web|title=Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup Canceled for 2019-20 Season|url=https://nacda.com/news/2020/3/19/directorscup-learfield-img-college-directors-cup-canceled-for-2019-20-season.aspx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210712065233/https://nacda.com/news/2020/3/19/directorscup-learfield-img-college-directors-cup-canceled-for-2019-20-season.aspx|archive-date=2021-07-12}}{{Efn|At the time of the competition being canceled the top 10 was as follows: Stanford, Michigan, Washington, Wisconsin, BYU, Virginia, Penn State, Louisville, Notre Dame, North Carolina{{Cite web |title=Final Fall DI Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup Standings|url=https://nacda.com/news/2020/1/16/directorscup-final-fall-di-learfield-img-college-directors-cup-standings.aspx|access-date=2022-11-20 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics|language=en}}|group=2020 d1}}

2020–21{{cite web|title=2020-21 D1 Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2021/7/1//July2OverallDI.pdf?id=4339|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702171803/https://nacda.com/documents/2021/7/1//July2OverallDI.pdf?id=4339|archive-date=2 July 2021|access-date=2 July 2021}}

| Texas

| Stanford

| Michigan

| North Carolina

| Florida

| USC

| Alabama

| Arkansas

| Ohio State

| Georgia

2021–22{{cite web|title=2021-22 D1 Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2022/6/30/FinalDIstandings.pdf|access-date=4 September 2022}}

| Texas

| Stanford

| Michigan

| Ohio State

| Florida

| North Carolina

| Arkansas

| Notre Dame

| Kentucky

| Oklahoma

2022–23{{cite web|title=FinalDIStandings (PDF)|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2023/6/27/Final22.23Standings.pdf|access-date=28 June 2023}}

| Stanford

| Texas

| Ohio State

| Virginia

| Florida

| Tennessee

| Georgia

| North Carolina

| LSU

| USC

2023–24{{cite web|title=FinalDIStandings (PDF)|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2023/6/27/Final22.23Standings.pdf|access-date=28 June 2023}}

| Texas

| Stanford

| Tennessee

| Florida

| Virginia

| Texas A&M

| North Carolina

| Michigan

| Alabama

| UCLA

class="wikitable sortable"
University

!Cup wins

Top Ten Rankings
Stanford

|26

30
Texas

|3

25
North Carolina

|1

25
Florida

|

30
UCLA

|

24
Michigan

|

23
USC

|

19
Ohio State

|

15
Penn State

|

12
Georgia

|

12
Virginia

|

10
California

|

8
Arizona

|

8

Stanford and Florida are the only schools to finish within the top 10 every season. Stanford has never finished below second.

{{Notelist|group=2020 d1}}

=NCAA Division II=

class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
style="width:15%" | Year

! style="width:17%" | First

! style="width:17%" | Second

! style="width:17%" | Third

! style="width:17%" | Fourth

! style="width:17%" | Fifth

1995–96

| UC Davis

| Abilene Christian

| North Dakota State

| South Dakota State

| Cal State Bakersfield

1996–97

| UC Davis

| Abilene Christian

| Cal State Bakersfield

| Central Oklahoma

| Indianapolis

1997–98

| Cal State Bakersfield

| UC Davis

| Abilene Christian

| Barry

| Florida Southern

1998–99

| Adams State

| colspan="2" | (tie) UC Davis; Abilene Christian

| colspan="2" | (tie) Florida Southern; North Dakota State

1999–2000

| UC Davis

| North Dakota State

| North Dakota

| Florida Southern

| Western Colorado

2000–01

| UC Davis

| North Dakota

| Cal State Bakersfield

| UC San Diego

| Western Colorado

2001–02

| UC Davis

| Grand Valley State

| UC San Diego

| Truman State

| Western Colorado

2002–03

| UC Davis

| Grand Valley State

| North Florida

| Cal State Bakersfield

| South Dakota State

2003–04

| Grand Valley State

| UC San Diego

| Truman State

| North Dakota

| Chico State

2004–05

| Grand Valley State

| Nebraska–Omaha

| Chico State

| North Dakota

| Cal State Bakersfield

2005–06

| Grand Valley State

| Abilene Christian

| Nebraska–Omaha

| Southern Illinois Edwardsville

| Cal State Bakersfield

2006–07

| Grand Valley State

| UC San Diego

| Abilene Christian

| Minnesota State Mankato

| North Dakota

2007–08

| Grand Valley State

| Abilene Christian

| Minnesota State Mankato

| UC San Diego

| Tampa

2008–09

| Grand Valley State

| Minnesota State Mankato

| Central Missouri

| Abilene Christian

| Indianapolis

2009–10

| Grand Valley State

| California (PA)

| Central Missouri

| Minnesota State Mankato

| St. Cloud State

2010–11

| Grand Valley State

| Central Missouri

| Augustana (SD)

| Abilene Christian

| UC San Diego

2011–12

| Grand Canyon

| Grand Valley State

| Ashland

| Augustana (SD)

| Indianapolis

2012–13

| Grand Canyon

| Grand Valley State

| Ashland

| Minnesota State Mankato

| Adams State

2013–14

| Grand Valley State

| West Texas A&M

| Central Missouri

| Indianapolis

| Ashland

2014–15

| Grand Valley State

| Ashland

| Central Missouri

| Lewis (IL)

| Minnesota State

2015–16

| Grand Valley State

| Saint Leo (FL)

| UC San Diego

| California Baptist

| Minnesota State

2016–17

| Grand Valley State

| California Baptist

| West Florida

| UC San Diego

| Queens (NC)

2017–18

| California Baptist

| Grand Valley State

| West Texas A&M

| Saint Leo (FL)

| Florida Southern

2018–19

| Grand Valley State

| UC San Diego

| West Texas A&M

| Queens (NC)

| Indianapolis

2019–20

| colspan="5" rowspan="2" |Not awarded because of the COVID-19 pandemic{{Cite web|title=2020-21 Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup Update|url=https://nacda.com/news/2021/5/24/nacda-2020-21-learfield-img-college-directors-cup-update.aspx|access-date=2021-11-16|website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics|language=en}}{{Efn|At the time of the 2020 competition being canceled the top 5 was as follows: Colorado Mines, Western Washington, Grand Valley State, Wingate, West Chester (PA){{Cite web|title=December 2019 NCAA Division II Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup Standings|url=https://nacda.com/news/2019/12/19/directorscup-ncaa-division-ii-learfield-img-college-directors-cup-standings.aspx|access-date=2022-11-20 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en}}|group=2020 d2}}

2020–21
2021–22

|Grand Valley State

|West Texas A&M

|Indianapolis

|Queens (NC)

|Azusa Pacific

2022–23{{Cite web |date=2023-06-13 |title=Stanford, Grand Valley, Johns Hopkins and Indiana Tech Secure LEARFIELD Directors' Cups |url=https://nacda.com/news/2023/6/13/directorscup-stanford-grand-valley-johns-hopkins-and-indiana-tech-secure-learfield-directors-cups.aspx |access-date=2023-06-29 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en}}

|Grand Valley State

|West Texas A&M

|Colorado Mines

|Indianapolis

|Wingate

2023–24{{cite press release |url=https://nacda.com/news/2024/6/11/directorscup-texas-grand-valley-johns-hopkins-and-cumberlands-secure-learfield-directors-cups.aspx |title=Texas, Grand Valley, Johns Hopkins and Cumberlands Secure Learfield Directors' Cups |publisher=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |date=June 11, 2024 |access-date=June 27, 2024}}

| Grand Valley State

| Indianapolis

| West Texas A&M

| Wingate

| Tampa

{{Notelist|group=2020 d2}}Schools in italics no longer compete in Division II.

class="wikitable sortable"

|+

!University

!Cup wins

Grand Valley State

| 16

UC Davis

| 6

Grand Canyon

| 2

Adams State

| 1

Cal State Bakersfield

| 1

California Baptist

| 1

=NCAA Division III=

class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
style="width:15%" | Year

! style="width:17%" | First

! style="width:17%" | Second

! style="width:17%" | Third

! style="width:17%" | Fourth

! style="width:17%" | Fifth

1995–96

| Williams

| UC San Diego

| Wisconsin–Oshkosh

| College of New Jersey

| Rowan

1996–97

| Williams

| College of New Jersey

| UC San Diego

| Emory

| Wisconsin–Oshkosh

1997–98

| UC San Diego

| colspan="2" | (tie) College of New Jersey; Cortland State

| colspan="2" | (tie) Williams; Middlebury

1998–99

| Williams

| Middlebury

| College of New Jersey

| Amherst

| Rowan

1999–2000

| Williams

| UC San Diego

| College of New Jersey

| St. Thomas (MN)

| Middlebury

2000–01

| Williams

| Middlebury

| College of New Jersey

| Emory

| Ithaca

2001–02

| Williams

| Ithaca

| College of New Jersey

| Middlebury

| Emory

2002–03

| Williams

| Emory

| College of New Jersey

| Trinity (TX)

| Washington (MO)

2003–04

| Williams

| Emory

| Middlebury

| College of New Jersey

| Wisconsin–Stevens Point

2004–05

| Williams

| Middlebury

| Washington (MO)

| Trinity (TX)

| Wisconsin–Stevens Point

2005–06

| Williams

| College of New Jersey

| Middlebury

| Emory

| Cortland State

2006–07

| Williams

| Middlebury

| Cortland State

| Amherst

| Washington (MO)

2007–08

| Williams

| Washington (MO)

| College of New Jersey

| Amherst

| Middlebury

2008–09

| Williams

| Middlebury

| Amherst

| Washington (MO)

| Cortland State

2009–10

| Williams

| Amherst

| Washington (MO)

| Middlebury

| Illinois Wesleyan

2010–11

| Williams

| Middlebury

| Washington (MO)

| Amherst

| Calvin

2011–12

| Middlebury

| Washington (MO)

| Williams

| Amherst

| Wisconsin–Whitewater

2012–13

| Williams

| Emory

| Middlebury

| Wisconsin–Whitewater

| Washington (MO)

2013–14

| Williams

| Wisconsin–Whitewater

| Johns Hopkins

| Washington (MO)

| Amherst

2014–15

| Williams

| Johns Hopkins

| MIT

| Washington (MO)

| Amherst

2015–16

| Williams

| Washington (MO)

| Emory

| Tufts

| Middlebury

2016–17

| Williams

| Washington (MO)

| Tufts

| Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

| Johns Hopkins

2017–18

| Williams

| MIT

| Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

| Emory

| Middlebury

2018–19

| Williams

| Johns Hopkins

| Washington (MO)

| Middlebury

| Emory

2019–20

| colspan="5" rowspan="2" |Not awarded because of the COVID-19 pandemic{{Efn|At the time of the 2020 competition being canceled the top 5 was as follows: Johns Hopkins, Tufts, Chicago, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Middlebury{{Cite web |title= December 2019 NCAA Division III Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup Standings|url=https://nacda.com/news/2019/12/12/directorscup-ncaa-division-iii-learfield-img-college-directors-cup-standings.aspx|access-date=2022-11-20 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en}}|group=2020 d3}}

2020–21
2021–22

|Tufts

|Johns Hopkins

|Middlebury

|MIT

|Washington (MO)

2022–23

|Johns Hopkins

|Tufts

|Williams

|MIT

|Emory

2023–24

| Johns Hopkins

| Williams

| Emory

| Tufts

| NYU

{{Notelist|group=2020 d3}}Schools in italics no longer compete in Division III.

class="wikitable sortable"

|+

!University

!Cup wins

Williams

| 22

Johns Hopkins

| 2

UC San Diego

| 1

Middlebury

| 1

Tufts

| 1

=NAIA=

class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
style="width:15%" | Year

! style="width:17%" | First

! style="width:17%" | Second

! style="width:17%" | Third

! style="width:17%" | Fourth

! style="width:17%" | Fifth

1995–96

| Pacific Lutheran

| Simon Fraser

| Mobile

| Berry

| Azusa Pacific

1996–97

| Simon Fraser

| Pacific Lutheran

| Azusa Pacific

| Mobile

| Willamette

1997–98

| Simon Fraser

| Mobile

| Findlay

| Oklahoma City

| Puget Sound

1998–99

| Simon Fraser

| Azusa Pacific

| Life

| colspan="2" | (tie) Oklahoma City; Lindenwood

1999–2000

| Simon Fraser

| Lindenwood

| Azusa Pacific

| Mary

| Oklahoma City

2000–01

| Simon Fraser

| Oklahoma City

| Azusa Pacific

| Lindenwood

| Cumberlands (KY)

2001–02

| Oklahoma City

| Lindenwood

| Simon Fraser

| Azusa Pacific

| Malone

2002–03

| Lindenwood

| Simon Fraser

| Azusa Pacific

| Mary

| Oklahoma City

2003–04

| Simon Fraser

| Azusa Pacific

| Lindenwood

| Oklahoma City

| (tie) Mary; Dickinson State

2004–05

| Azusa Pacific

| Lindenwood

| Simon Fraser

| Point Loma Nazarene

| Mary

2005–06

| Azusa Pacific

| Lindenwood

| Lindsey Wilson

| Oklahoma Baptist

| Simon Fraser

2006–07

| Azusa Pacific

| Lindenwood

| Concordia (CA)

| Cedarville

| Oklahoma Baptist

2007–08

| Azusa Pacific

| Simon Fraser

| Embry–Riddle

| Fresno Pacific

| Concordia (CA)

2008–09

| Azusa Pacific

| Concordia (CA)

| Lindenwood

| Fresno Pacific

| California Baptist

2009–10

| Azusa Pacific

| Simon Fraser

| Fresno Pacific

| Concordia (CA)

| Lindenwood

2010–11

| Azusa Pacific

| Embry–Riddle

| Shorter

| Fresno Pacific

| Lindenwood

2011–12

| Azusa Pacific

| Shorter

| Embry–Riddle

| Oklahoma Baptist

| Lindsey Wilson

2012–13

| Oklahoma Baptist

| Lindsey Wilson

| Concordia (CA)

| Embry–Riddle (FL)

| Olivet Nazarene

2013–14

| Grand View

| Oklahoma City

| Lindsey Wilson

| Embry–Riddle

| Olivet Nazarene

2014–15

| Oklahoma Baptist

| Lindsey Wilson

| Oklahoma City

| Wayland Baptist

| Embry–Riddle

2015–16

| Lindsey Wilson

| Oklahoma Baptist

| Wayland Baptist

| Olivet Nazarene

| Indiana Wesleyan

2016–17

| Oklahoma City

| Lindsey Wilson

| Keiser

| Wayland Baptist

| William Carey

2017–18

| Oklahoma City

| Lindsey Wilson

| Wayland Baptist

| Keiser

| Indiana Wesleyan

2018–19

| Oklahoma City

| William Carey

| Lindsey Wilson

| Keiser

| Indiana Wesleyan

2019–20

| colspan="5" |Not awarded because of the COVID-19 pandemic{{Efn|At the time of the competition being canceled the top 5 was as follows: Lindsey Wilson, Indiana Wesleyan, Eastern Oregon, Grand View, Cumberlands (KY){{Cite web |title=March 2020 NAIA Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup Standings|url=https://nacda.com/news/2020/3/12/directorscup-naia-learfield-img-college-directors-cup-standings.aspx|access-date=2022-11-20 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en}}|group=2020 naia}}

2020–21

|Keiser

|Indiana Tech

| Indiana Wesleyan

|Oklahoma City

|Marian (IN)

2021–22

|Indiana Wesleyan

|Keiser

|Grand View

|Indiana Tech

|Southeastern (FL)

2022–23

|Indiana Tech

|Marian (IN)

|Keiser

|Indiana Wesleyan

|Southeastern (FL)

2023–24

| Cumberlands

| Indiana Wesleyan

| Keiser

| Marian

| William Carey

{{notelist|group=2020 naia}}

Schools in italics no longer compete in the NAIA.

class="wikitable sortable"

|+

!University

!Cup wins

Azusa Pacific

| 8

Simon Fraser

| 6

Oklahoma City

| 4

Oklahoma Baptist

| 2

Cumberlands

| 1

Grand View

| 1

Indiana Tech

| 1

Indiana Wesleyan

| 1

Keiser

| 1

Lindenwood

| 1

Lindsey Wilson

| 1

Pacific Lutheran

| 1

= Two-year colleges =

{{See also|NATYCAA Cup}}

class="wikitable" style="width:100%"

! style="width:15%" |Year

! style="width:17%" |First

! style="width:17%" |Second

! style="width:17%" |Third

! style="width:17%" |Fourth

! style="width:17%" |Fifth

2011–12{{Cite web|title=2011-12 Two year college Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/7/19//natycaalearfield.pdf?id=2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702191335/https://nacda.com/documents/2018/7/19//natycaalearfield.pdf?id=2009|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

|Fresno (CA)

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Orange Coast (CA)

|Iowa Central

|Santa Rosa (CA)

2012–13{{Cite web|title=2012-13 Two year college Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/7/19//LearfieldDC2year13.pdf?id=2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702183249/https://nacda.com/documents/2018/7/19//LearfieldDC2year13.pdf?id=2010|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

|Gloucester (NJ){{Efn|Now known as Rowan College|name=Gloucester|group=Gloucester}}

|Iowa Central

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Monroe (NY)

|Suffolk (NY)

2013–14{{Cite web|title=2013-14 Two year college Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/natycaa/auto_pdf/2013-14/misc_non_event/natycaadcstand14.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314205920/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/natycaa/auto_pdf/2013-14/misc_non_event/natycaadcstand14.pdf|archive-date=2016-03-14}}

|Iowa Western

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Herkimer (NY)

|Iowa Central

|Orange Coast (CA)

2014–15{{Cite web|title=2014-15 Two year college Final Standings|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2014-15/misc_non_event/natycaadc2015.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314204539/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/2014-15/misc_non_event/natycaadc2015.pdf|archive-date=2016-03-14}}

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Iowa Central

|Herkimer (NY)

|Nassau (NY)

|Iowa Western

2015–16{{Cite web |title=NATYCAALDC16Top25 (PDF) |url=https://nacda.com/documents/2016/6/28/_nacda_natycaa_2015_16_misc_non_event__NATYCAALDC16Top25.pdf |access-date=2022-11-20 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en}}

|Iowa Central

|Suffolk (NY)

|Rowan (NJ){{Efn|Previously Gloucester County College|name=Rowan|group=Gloucester}}

|Spokane (WA)

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

2016–17{{Cite web |title=1617NATYCAALDCFinal (PDF) |url=https://nacda.com/documents/2017/7/11/_nacda_natycaa_2017_18_misc_non_event__1617NATYCAALDCFinal.pdf |access-date=2022-11-20 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en}}

|Iowa Central

|Spokane (WA)

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Tyler (TX)

|Riverside (CA)

2017–18{{Cite web|title=2017-18 Two year college Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/documents/2018/6/19/_nacda_natycaa_2017_18_misc_non_event__DIRECTORS-CUP1718_TwoYears.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702183337/https://nacda.com/documents/2018/6/19/_nacda_natycaa_2017_18_misc_non_event__DIRECTORS-CUP1718_TwoYears.pdf|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

|Iowa Central

|Rowan (NJ){{Efn|Previously Gloucester County College|name=Rowan|group=Gloucester}}

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Tyler (TX)

|Herkimer (NY)

2018–19{{Cite web|title=2018-19 Two year college Final Standings|url=https://nacda.com/images/2019/6/27/NATYCAALearfield1819.jpeg|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702214403/https://nacda.com/images/2019/6/27/NATYCAALearfield1819.jpeg|archive-date=2021-07-02}}

|Iowa Central

|Suffolk (NY)

|Barton (KS)

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Spokane (WA)

2019–20

| colspan="5" |Not awarded because of the COVID-19 pandemic

2020–21{{Cite web|title=Iowa Central CC captures the 2020-21 Two-Year College LEARFIELD Directors' Cup|url=https://nacda.com/news/2021/8/11/natycaa-iowa-central-cc-captures-the-2020-21-two-year-college-learfield-directors-cup.aspx|access-date=2021-11-16|website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics|language=en}}

|Iowa Central

|Iowa Western

|Barton (KS)

|Tyler (TX)

|Cowley (KS)

2021–22{{Cite web |title=2021 2022 Learfield Directors' Cup Two Year Colleges Final Results Top 30 (PDF) |url=https://nacda.com/documents/2022/7/13/2021-2022_LEARFIELD_DIRECTORS__CUP-TWO_YEAR_COLLEGES-FINAL_RESULTS-TOP_30.pdf |access-date=2022-11-13 |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |language=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113223313/https://nacda.com/documents/2022/7/13/2021-2022_LEARFIELD_DIRECTORS__CUP-TWO_YEAR_COLLEGES-FINAL_RESULTS-TOP_30.pdf |archive-date=2022-11-13 }}

|Iowa Western

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Iowa Central

|Barton (KS)

|Rowan (NJ){{Efn|Previously Gloucester County College|name=Rowan|group=Gloucester}}

2022–23{{cite web |title=2022 2023 LEARFIELD CUP FINAL STANDINGS REVISED 7 1 23 (PDF) |url=https://nacda.com/documents/2023/7/28/2022-2023_LEARFIELD_CUP_FINAL_STANDINGS-REVISED_7-1-23.pdf |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |access-date=16 May 2025 |language=en}}

|DuPage (IL)

|Rowan (NJ){{Efn|Previously Gloucester County College|name=Rowan|group=Gloucester}}

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Iowa Western

|Iowa Central

2023–24{{cite web |title=LEARFIELD CUP FINAL STANDINGS 2024 TOP 30 6 10 24 (PDF) |url=https://nacda.com/documents/2024/7/9/LEARFIELD_CUP_FINAL_STANDINGS__2024_TOP_30_6-10-24.pdf |website=National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics |access-date=16 May 2025 |language=en}}

|Rowan (NJ){{Efn|Previously Gloucester County College|name=Rowan|group=Gloucester}}

|Iowa Western

|Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|Barton (KS)

|New Mexico JC

{{Notelist|group=Gloucester}}

class="wikitable sortable"

|+

!College

!Cup wins

Iowa Central

|5

Iowa Western

|2

Gloucester/Rowan (NJ)

|2

Fresno (CA)

|1

Mt. San Antonio (CA)

|1

DuPage (IL)

|1

See also

References

{{Reflist}}