[Rudiger]

The academic ratings aren't about the school as a whole, but how the athletics program rates with respect to academics. I don't know exactly what goes into it, but a major factor is the graduation rate for athletes. It also appears that large state schools are held to different (lower) standards than smaller or private schools. So even though it has lower grad rates than Rice, Michigan has very good grad rates compared to most large schools which earns it a high rating.
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