Oct. 10, 2002

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - University of Maryland's varsity athletic program, which featured a national championship in men's basketball and a BCS bowl appearance by the football team in 2001-02, has been ranked No. 24 among "America's best sports colleges" by Sports Illustrated magazine.

You can read about SI's compilation, which includes all 324 Division I athletic programs, by clicking here.

According to SI, the magazine "combined a variety of factors in arriving at its 2002 rankings of Division I schools, including performance during the 2001-02 school year in the big five sports (baseball, football, hockey, and men's and women's basketball); position in the '01-02 Sears Cup NCAA all-sports standings; number of varsity, club and intramural sports; range of recreational facilities; and whether or not spirit-boosting events like Midnight Madness were held."