We’ve been talking about it for a week, but now it’s official: The NCAA has released its Academic Progress Rate for 2007-08.

The men’s basketball program’s score was a paltry, 888. It is the only one of Arkansas’ 19 teams that finished below the 925 cutline.

Remember, teams that fall below 925 are subject to immediate penalties from the NCAA. If any Arkansas basketball player went 0-for-2 — meaning he wasn’t eligible and wasn’t retained — his scholarship would’ve been forfeited. Arkansas was not slapped with any immediate penalties, meaning every athlete that left the program was at least academically eligible.

However, Arkansas was hit with the first phase of historical penalties when it received a public warning from the NCAA today.

Those are levied when a team finished below 900. Arkansas must raise its APR figure significantly next year or else it will be subject to harsher historical penalties. Scholarship losses and the loss of practice time can be levied in year two of historical penalties. A postseason ban (along with scholarship and practice time losses) is handed out in year three.

So Arkansas’ concern clearly isn’t about this year’s warning. It’s about what will happen next year if the score doesn’t improve. The Razorbacks aren’t off to a good start considering Montrell McDonald, Andre Clark and Brandon Moore have all left the program in the past year. Forward Michael Washington could join that list, too, if he decides to play professional basketball.

If any of the three that transferred are academically ineligible and Arkansas falls below the 925 cutline next spring, scholarship losses will be levied. If Arkansas falls into the historical penalty group for a second straight year, scholarship and practice time losses can be levied, too. So there’s no denying this is a sticky situation for the time being.

Anyway, here is a quick rundown of how every Arkansas program fared in this year’s APR. Remember, this is a four-year rolling average that includes academic information from 2007-08, 2006-07, 2005-06, and 2004-05.

MEN’S SPORTS

Baseball    945
Basketball    888
Cross Country    943
Football    927
Golf    945
Tennis    959
Indoor Track    964
Outdoor Track 970

WOMEN’S SPORTS

Basketball    975
Cross Country    977
Golf    1000
Gymnastics    991
Softball    964
Soccer    991
Swimming    965
Tennis    932
Indoor Track    954
Outdoor Track    960
Volleyball    959