Original sentence: He was given a Bachelors of Arts in Sociology(which at Auburn is a sham, as pointed out by the NY Times), and, as hard as is is to believe(well, maybe not that hard to believe since it was at Auburn), actually completed coursework towards his Master's Degree during the Fall 2006 football season
Edited sentence: He received a Bachelors of Arts in Sociology, and actually completed coursework towards his Master's Degree during the Fall 2006 football season