The Texas Longhorns broke a 25-year streak when they defeated the Stanford Cardinal for the 2020-21 NACDA Learfield Directors' Cup. The Horns repeated their success in 2022 and won it for a third time in 2024.
Now, Texas is primed to secure the award once again as the baseball team cements its ranking as the No. 1 team in the nation and softball continues to excel, alongside the men's and women's track and field teams, the women's golf team, and more.
How does the Directors' Cup work?
The Directors' Cup was created by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today to reward the program with the most success over an athletic year (fall through spring). Points are awarded based on each program's finish in NCAA Championships.
This year, the NACDA updated its scoring structure, including more sports than previously used to calculate points.
"New this year, an additional countable sport has been added on the Division I side, bringing the total number of countable sports to five. On the women's side, soccer joins basketball and volleyball, while the men's side will continue to be baseball and basketball. Overall, 19 total sports are counted for the final standings in June, including the five countable sports, and the next highest 14 sports scored for each institution, regardless of gender."
Where does Texas sit in the current Directors' Cup standings?
Currently, Stanford stands atop the nation with the win from the winter standings, followed by the North Carolina Tar Heels, who secured the fall victory. However, Texas continues to creep up the rankings and currently resides at No. 9, with 14 championships still pending.
A recent report projected the Longhorns to win the cup, once again, rather handily defeating both the Tar Heels and the Cardinal, who would finish second and third, respectively
No change to the @TexasLonghorns projected score from last week. They project to win by a healthy margin.
— Directors’ Cup Updates (@Direct_Cupdates) April 23, 2025
Stanford with a big drop now that I’m projecting a 0 for baseball.
USC slides a bit and UNC is now projected to knock the Cardinal down to 3rd. pic.twitter.com/Ql1uTvitcw
Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte shared his thoughts on the Longhorns' success after the men's tennis team won the SEC Tournament:
"Well, how do you do SEC Championship Trophy NUMBER 6! Light the Tower Orange as Men’s Tennis swept the SEC regular season AND tournament Championships," Del Conte wrote on X.
While the SEC results don't affect the point totals in the Directors' Cup race, it's always a good sign when the Horns can secure a title or two (or six) in one of the most competitive conferences in the nation.