The American Football Coaches Association announced today that Clemson has been named as one of seven recipients of the 2024 AFCA Academic Achievement Award.
This year’s honor is in recognition of recently released NCAA Graduation Success Rates for the 2017 freshman cohort, for which Clemson Football’s 99 percent tied for the highest ever recorded by a public Power Five program. The award is Clemson’s fourth in the last seven years, but it is Clemson’s fourth in the last five years that the honor has actually been awarded, as the organization did not name recipients during a two-year period amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
More information from the AFCA is included below.
WACO, TEX. — Air Force, Clemson, Liberty, Notre Dame, Virginia, Wake Forest and Wisconsin will share the American Football Coaches Association’s 2024 Academic Achievement Award. The Memphis Touchdown Club presents the annual award, which is sponsored by BSN Sports.
All seven schools shared the highest graduation rate for members of their 2017 freshman football student-athlete classes. This is Notre Dame’s 11th honor, Virginia’s fifth, Clemson’s fourth and Air Force’s third. Wake Forest is receiving their second honor while Liberty and Wisconsin are receiving the award for the first time. The head coaches of the winning schools will be honored during the 2025 AFCA Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina on Sunday, January 12.
This year’s award marks the 13th time the NCAA’s Graduation Success Rate (GSR) one-year formula has been used to select the winner. From 1981 to 2007, the award was presented based on a formula used by the College Football Association and the AFCA. From 2008-17, the criteria for the AFCA’s Academic Achievement Award was based on the highest NCAA GSR, and a Federal Graduation Rate of 75 percent or better. For 2018 and 2019, the AFCA used the NCAA’s single-year APR. The AFCA returned to the GSR one-year formula in 2022.
The GSR is based on a six-year graduation window for student-athletes and holds institutions accountable for transfer students, unlike the federal graduation rate. The GSR also accounts for midyear enrollees and non-scholarship students at schools that do not offer athletics aid. Under GSR calculation, institutions are not penalized for outgoing transfer students who leave in good academic standing. These outgoing transfers are passed to the receiving institution’s GSR cohort.
The Academic Achievement Award was established by the College Football Association in 1981. The award recognized the CFA-member Football Bowl Subdivision institution with the highest graduation rate among members of its football team. When the CFA disbanded in 1997, the AFCA stepped in to present the award.
Past Academic Achievement Award Winners1981: Duke*1982: Notre Dame*1983: Notre Dame*1984: Duke, Notre Dame*1985: Virginia*1986: Virginia*1987: Duke*1988: Notre Dame*1989: Kentucky*1990: Duke*1991: Notre Dame*1992: Boston College, TCU*1993: Duke*1994: Duke*1995: Boston College, Duke, Wake Forest*1996: Boston College, Duke, Vanderbilt*1997: Duke*1998: Northwestern1999: Duke2000: Syracuse2001: Notre Dame, Vanderbilt2002: Northwestern2003: Duke2004: Boston College, Northwestern2005: Duke, Northwestern2006: SMU2007: Northwestern, Notre Dame2008: Vanderbilt2009: Notre Dame, Miami (Fla.)2010: Northwestern, Rice2011: Boise State, Miami (Ohio)2012: Northwestern, Stanford2013: Georgia, Rice, Stanford, Tulane2014: Duke, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Stanford2015: Duke, Vanderbilt2016: Miami (Fla.), Northwestern, Stanford2017: Alabama, Cincinnati, Middle Tennessee State, Northwestern, Utah, Utah State, Virginia2018: Clemson, Kansas State, Nevada, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh2019: Air Force, Alabama, Clemson, Louisville, Rice, Utah2020: no award given2021: no award given2022: Air Force, Boston College, Navy, Northwestern, Stanford, Toledo, Vanderbilt2023: Arkansas State, Buffalo, Clemson, Iowa State, Kansas State, Louisville, Navy, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, South Alabama, UTSA, Virginia
Most Awards: Duke, 14; Northwestern, 12; Notre Dame, 11; Boston College, 5; Stanford, 5; Vanderbilt, 5; Virginia, 5; Clemson, 4; Air Force, 3; Rice, 3.
*- Presented by the CFA
