[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5309]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 HONORING THE BELMONT UNIVERSITY BRUINS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JIM COOPER

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 21, 2015

  Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Belmont 
University and its men's basketball program, the Belmont Bruins, led by 
Coach Rick Byrd.
  Under Coach Byrd's leadership, Belmont's basketball program has 
flourished. Belmont is consistently among the top Division I teams and 
has made it to seven NCAA tournaments. But its most prestigious 
accomplishments are not on the court. The USA Today said it best: 
``Belmont wins where it counts: In the classroom.''
  Thanks to its perfect score from Inside Higher Ed's rankings, Belmont 
won the national championship for academics for the second time in 
three years. Every single player graduates. The team's cumulative grade 
point average has been above 3.0 for fourteen consecutive seasons, and 
no Belmont player since 2003 has left the basketball team for any 
reason other than graduation.
  Belmont's successes both on and off the court have separated the 
Bruins from the rest of the pack. Today, I join my fellow Tennesseans 
in honoring Coach Rick Byrd and the Belmont Bruins for their vigorous 
commitment to the highest standards in academics and athletics. They 
make our district and the state of Tennessee proud.

                          ____________________