Maryland universities link coach bonuses with players' grades

Maryland universities have agreed to a new policy that can deny coaches their bonuses for poor player grades in an unprecedented move for the NCAA.

The University System of Maryland's Board of Regents unanimously approved the new policy Friday, according to Jeff Barker of The Baltimore Sun.

"I think this is another step for Maryland to be in the vanguard on issues of intercollegiate athletics ... They were a leader on guaranteed scholarships and now they are a leader in academic accountability," said former U.S. Rep. Tom McMillen, who serves on the Board of Regents. 

The policy will utilize the Academic Progress Rate, or APR, which the NCAA releases every year to measures athletes' progression toward graduation. Programs that have fallen below the cutoff rate for the APR can be penalized with a loss of scholarships, practice time and now coaches' bonuses.

This move will apply to teams in a system that features Division-I athletic programs, including the University of Maryland, Towson, UMBC and Coppin State.

The policy will only apply to coaches hired after Friday, and will not apply to those with existing contracts.