Final Grades For Every College Football Team, Conference: How Did Everyone Do In 2019?

There’s a wee bit of a curve for each team, looking at how everyone did compared to their preseason expectations, and taking into account what happened and what the final records were.

Along with the final season grades are the CFN preseason rankings and predictions, the CFN Final Opinion Ranking, and the straight numbers and schedule analysis with the CFN 2019 Season Ranking.

They’re the final grades for the 2019 season. And then it’s on to 2020 …

ACC Team Season Grades: Atlantic

ACC Season Grade: C-

Clemson was fantastic. It was national championship-good, it proved once again that it’s among college football’s greatest powerhouses, and … that was it. No one other than North Carolina gave the ACC champ any sort of a game. In the end, only one team finished ranked in either of the main top 25 polls.

Louisville came up with a big season, North Carolina bounced back, and Virginia got to the ACC Championship, but it was all relative in a conference full of mediocrity. Syracuse, NC State and Duke were massive disappointments, Florida State and Miami were stunning duds, and the bowl season didn’t help the overall cause.

Boston College Season Grade: B-

2019 Record: 6-7
CFN 2019 Prediction: 7-5
CFN Preseason Ranking: 54
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 68
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 84

It wasn’t a totally awful season – the team went bowling – but head coach Steve Addazio was canned, QB Anthony Brown was hurt, and the team lost three of its final four games. The Eagles were supposed to be average, and that’s exactly what they turned out to be.

Clemson Season Grade: A+

2019 Record: 14-1
CFN 2019 Prediction: 11-1
CFN Preseason Ranking: 2
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 2
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 3

It’s disappointing when the bar is set at National Championship or Bust, but Clemson got through the regular season unscathed, won another ACC title, beat a fantastic Ohio State team in the College Football Playoff, and battled well in the national title game. So the Tigers lost to LSU – it was a special season by any reasonable standards.

Florida State Season Grade: C-

2019 Record: 6-7
CFN 2019 Prediction: 7-5
CFN Preseason Ranking: 36
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 57
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 78

It started strange – a supposedly dehydrated team lost to Boise State – a 4-5 start was enough to fire Willie Taggart with a month to go, and the campaign closed out with a second losing season in a row thanks to a six-turnover day in the Sun Bowl loss to Arizona State. This was hardly the next-step-forward season FSU fans were expecting and hoping for.

Louisville Season Grade: A

2019 Record: 8-5
CFN 2019 Prediction: 4-8
CFN Preseason Ranking: 58
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 36
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 37

It was supposed to take a little while for Scott Satterfield to build things back up. So much for that. In his first year, Satterfield made Louisville a factor again, taking the team to an eight-win season, a bowl game, a bowl win, and all with a fun and exciting offensive and team that brings hope for what’s to come. The year went beyond even the loftiest of expectations.

NC State Season Grade: D

2019 Record: 4-8
CFN 2019 Prediction: 7-5
CFN Preseason Ranking: 40
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 79
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 112

Yeeeeeeuck. Head coach Dave Doeren supposedly had the program to a level where it didn’t need to totally rebuild. In a down year in the ACC, the Wolfpack won just four games, out its last six, and only came up with one ACC win. The hope is for this to be a step back to take a giant leap forward, but 2019 wasn’t any fun.

Syracuse Season Grade: C-

2019 Record: 5-7
CFN 2019 Prediction: 7-5
CFN Preseason Ranking: 25
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 80
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 79

There are two ways to look at this. The season was half empty – this was a preseason top 25 team coming off a fantastic year. The momentum was all there to do something great, and the campaign was a dud. The season was half full – the team was only two wins worse than originally expected and it didn’t quit, winning two of its last three games. Even so, after the great 2018, the air went out of the balloon.

Wake Forest Season Grade: B+

2019 Record: 8-5
CFN 2019 Prediction: 6-6
CFN Preseason Ranking: 57
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 41
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 53

The season might have ended with four losses in the final five games, but that’s when the tough part of the slate kicked in. This was a fun team that got off to a 5-0 start and got to 7-1 before things started to slow down. Even so, a bowl appearance against Michigan State and a whole lot of offensive fireworks made it a good run. Eight wins at Wake Forest? Solid.

NEXT: ACC Team Season Grades: Coastal

ACC Team Season Grades: Coastal

Duke Season Grade: C+

2019 Record: 5-7
CFN 2019 Prediction: 5-7
CFN Preseason Ranking: 53
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 52
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 88

It's sort of hard to dog Duke too much considering it finished exactly where the preseason prediction lined up, but after starting 4-2, to drop five straight in a bad ACC and miss out on a bowl game wasn't okay. Closing out with a win over Miami at least made things look a wee bit better.

Georgia Tech Season Grade: C-

2019 Record: 3-9
CFN 2019 Prediction: 6-6
CFN Preseason Ranking: 50
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 75
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 122

It's not fair to punish Georgia Tech for making a call that it would be a whole lot better than it was. It was supposed to be a total rebuild of a season as the program shifted styles and gears, and that's exactly what it was, but still ... this was ugly. Losing to Citadel, dropping seven games in eight, and not finding any offensive punch made it a long campaign.

Miami Season Grade: C-

2019 Record: 6-7
CFN 2019 Prediction: 9-3
CFN Preseason Ranking: 22
CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 49
CFN 2019 Season Ranking: 60

There was SO much momentum and excitement. Manny Diaz brought the energy, a slew of transfers boosted up the talent, the defense was loaded with great veterans, and ... ugh. The offense didn't show up on regular basis, there were two losses to Conference USA teams, a bowl game shutout to Louisiana Tech, and it was a losing season for a team with the talent to have at least played for the ACC Championship.

North Carolina Season Grade: B+

2019 Record: 7-6
CFN 2019 Prediction: 3-9
CFN Preseason Ranking: 67
CFN Final Opini