National rankings of 37th to 96th for The University of Alabama and Auburn University had their presidents expressing satisfaction.

“The rankings reflect our continued efforts to grow with quality,” said UA President Robert Witt. His school ranked 83rd among public and private research universities and 37th among public universities.

“Having worked in other states for much of my career, I am astounded at what higher education in Alabama has been able to accomplish,” said AU President Jay Gogue. His school placed 96th and 45th, respectively. You might have guessed that they were not talking about football. No university president in Alabama would be proud of such rankings in football. Alabamians expect better.

The rankings in question are academic rankings from U.S. News & World Report magazine.

To be fair, the academic world is more complex than the gridiron. There are many more players and no scoreboard. And the latest rankings do speak well for our universities, which don’t have the financial resources, among other things, of many of their competitors. But Alabamians could do a better job of supporting academics and demanding excellence. If we ever get as fired up about learning as we are about sports, the nation will notice.