CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia football program was one of seven programs nationally to receive the 2024 American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Academic Achievement Award. It marks the fifth time UVA has earned the honor, tied for the fourth most of any FBS school in the country.

Virginia has previously won the award in 1985, 1986, 2017 and 2023. The Cavaliers share the 2024 award with Air Force, Clemson, Liberty, Notre Dame, Wake Forest and Wisconsin. UVA, Clemson and Notre Dame are the only three schools to win the award in back-to-back seasons.

Most Awards AFCA Academic Achievement Awards (since 1981)

  1. Duke, 14
  2. Northwestern – 12
  3. Notre Dame – 11
  4. Virginia, Boston College, Stanford, Vanderbilt – 5
  5. Clemson – 4
  6. Air Force, Rice – 3

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.

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.