Prior to 2004, no NCAA membership school recognized and acknowledged academic achievement on the front of a collegiate jersey in any sport.  It was during the 2004 NCAA football season that Scholar-Baller, working together with Arizona State University, Hampton University and Morgan State University, implemented the Scholar-Baller ThinkMan incentive patch on the football jerseys of each student-athlete with at least a 3.0 GPA. 

In 2005, ESPN the Magazine featured a brief article (click here to see it) on Scholar-Baller and its incentive patch.  Numerous inquires where then received from high schools, community colleges and universities.  A follow-up article was written that the schools at the time utilizing the Scholar-Baller patch were not the only schools to recognize academic achievement on a jersey during athletic competition.  However, Scholar-Baller was the first theoretically and empirically (1995 to present) and practically (2001 to present).

In 2004, after the Scholar-Baller patch debuted at Arizona State University and after attending a Scholar-Baller presentation at the 2004 N4A meeting, Purdue University created their own academic recognition patch known as SA for Success in Academics.  In 2005 Purdue enlarged the patch to closer resemble the Scholar-Baller patch size and representation.

Also in 2005, Fresno State University developed their own adaptation of the Scholar-Baller patch with one called Academic Achievers.

In 2006, the University of Tennessee, after having hosting Scholar-Baller co-founder Jean Boyd for a full presentation on Scholar-Baller in summer 2005, chose to implement their own curriculum and incentive-based program called Vol-Scholar.   Vol-Scholar picks upon certain concepts from Scholar-Baller but is less theory based and doesn't utilize the national identity, assessment and evaluation, and curriculum efforts of Scholar-Baller.
Vol-Scholar link:  http://utsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/090106aaf.html