m Gase said. If we let him get going, thats a recipe for di

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The NCAA announced Tuesday that 77 percent of black mens Division I basketball players who entered college in 2009 earned a degree within six years, up five points from a year earlier and a record high.That improvement helped the overall Graduation Success Rate match last years record of 86 percent of athletes graduating within six years, the NCAA said. Of all black Division I student-athletes, 74 percent graduated within six years. NCAA President Mark Emmert said in a news release the improved rates were hugely significant.Over the last 15 years, the overall Graduation Success Rate has dramatically improved, but the really good news is how college sports helps more and more minority students, especially those playing our highest-profile sport, earn a degree that will help them long after their athletics career is over, he said.The graduation rate for black basketball players is up 31 percentage points over the past 15 years, the NCAA said . Overall, all black male athletes have increased their GSR by 19 percentage points to 70 percent during that time. Black female athletes improved their rate 13 points to 84 percent over that same time.For all Division I athletes, the rate increased 12 percentage points during the past 15 years.B. David Ridpath, an associate professor and sports business and president of The Drake Group, an NCAA watchdog, said the GSR provides only a partial picture, pointing to reports of athletes at North Carolina taking courses aimed at boosting their GPAs in a department popular with athletes.Are we essentially practicing eligibility maintenance, potentially in a major with friendly faculty? he said. Are these kids graduating with a very meaningful, vital degree that can benefit them for the next 50 to 60 years of their life? In some cases, yes, this is happening. But all too often -- and I know this because I worked in college athletics -- were essentially pushing these kids through, keeping them eligible and in cases where they do graduate they might not be graduating with the requisite skills.Among football teams in The Associated Press Top 25 , the only teams with a GSR 65 percent or lower were No. 25 Troy at 65 percent and No. 13 Oklahoma State at 50 percent. Among Top 25 mens basketball teams , No. 4 Oregon had a GSR of 38 percent, No. 25 California 40 percent, No. 5 North Carolina, No. 18 Syracuse and No. 24 Cincinnati all had GSRs of 50 percent, and No. 13 Michigan State has a GSR of 63 percent.The University of Connecticut mens basketball team had one of the lower graduation rates at 22 percent, according to the latest results. But those 2009 numbers were actually a big improvement over previous years. The teams GSR rose from just 8 percent in 2006, 17 percent the following year and 20 percent in 2008.School spokesman Mike Enright said the poor graduation rate reflects the same time period for which UConn was sanctioned by the NCAA and missed the 2013 postseason because of an another indicator, the Academic Progress Rate, which measures whether players are in good academic standing.The school has reported perfect or near perfect APR scores since 2012-13 and is expecting similar numbers this year, Enright said. He also said all current members of the basketball team are on track to graduate.The academic achievement of our mens basketball team has been outstanding the past several years and I have a full expectation that this will continue, athletic director David Benedict said.---AP Sports Writer Pat Eaton-Robb in Storrs, Connecticut, contributed to this report.Wholesale Throwback Jerseys . 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They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display.DAVIE, Fla. -- The Miami Dolphins now have something in common with their 1984 Super Bowl team, and its not good.Miami has allowed 971 yards the past two weeks, the highest total in consecutive games for the franchise in 32 years. The 1984 team gave up 455 yards in the AFC championship game and 537 in the Super Bowl, a collapse even Dan Marino couldnt overcome as Miami lost the title game.The Dolphins defense hasnt retreated so furiously since -- until now. Coordinator Vance Josephs unit has allowed season-high yardage totals (475 and 496) each of the past two games, the latter a 38-6 loss at Baltimore.The last two weeks we havent played well, Joseph said Thursday. Its Week 13. What weve done well for the last month and a half is on tape. Everyone is making adjustments, so we have to make an adjustment now and help our guys more.A dramatic turnaround will be necessary Sunday if Miami (7-5) is to beat the explosive Arizona Cardinals (5-6-1).The defense appeared upgraded during a six-game winning streak in October and November, but the Dolphins rankings have been in freefall the past two weeks. Theyre now 25th in yards allowed and 30th against the run.Pass defense has been the biggest problem lately. San Franciscos Colin Kaepernick threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns against Miami in Week 12, and Joe Flacco threw for 381 yards and four scores last week.Flacco and the Ravens did most of their damage in the middle of the field, exposing weaknesses in pass coverage by an injury-depleted linebacker corps.We were trying to play tight coverage, and it wasnt happening, Joseph said. We were soft across the middle. Joe got hot, and we couldnt stop it. We couldnt cover them. We couldnt chase them. We played zone; it was too soft. We played man; we couldnt chase them. It wasnt good.Carson Palmer is sure to test the Dolphins the same way with throws too Larry Fitzgerald and David Johnson, who leads all running backs in receptions (64) and receiving yards (704), and leads the NFL in scrimmage yards.dddddddddddd.Our defense has to make sure we dont let Johnson take complete control of this game, Miami coach Adam Gase said. If we let him get going, thats a recipe for disaster for us.Another worry is the 6-foot-3, 218-pound Fitzgerald in the slot. Cameron Wake, the Dolphins 263-pound defensive end, happened to walk past as Joseph was discussing the challenge of covering Fitzgerald over the middle.I can play nickel, Wake said.Hes your size, so maybe, Joseph responded.With Kiko Alonso nursing hamstring and thumb injuries, the Dolphins might be forced to start backups at all three linebacker spots. Theyve also been without two starters in the secondary, making the season -- especially the Ravens game -- an education for young replacements.We can learn a lot from that, and I think we will, veteran cornerback Byron Maxwell said. Weve got a lot of smart guys on this team, and they want to get better. Its going to be better next time.Joseph has been known to shake up the lineup, but said hes not planning any changes this week. Effort hasnt been an issue, he said, and his main complaint has involved self-inflicted damage.As one example, he noted a third-and-15 play where the Ravens took advantage of a mental mistake.Lets be more detailed, he said. Lets get back to doing it right, and then we can see how we fare. But the last two weeks, it has been too much error.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL.---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wine ' ' '