The regular season is over, which makes these final performances that much more critical for each team. It was an up and down weekend—some of the better teams this season put up clunkers and some of the weakest showed their best days at the season’s end. But regardless, as it’s been all year, everybody gets a grade for their week’s work, and we’ll pick a couple of teams for hall passes (good work) or detention (bad work) on offense, defense, special teams, and coaching.

Overall grades

SEC WEST

Alabama: A

It could have been more glamorous, but Bama did what Bama does. In a season where everybody else stumbled, this was a game that could have tripped up the Tide, but they flat didn’t let it. At 30-12, the game probably sounds more competitive than it was, but Bama was fine.

LSU: A-

We saw a statement game for the Tigers, with 622 yards including 324 in the air. Hard to fathom but for a second straight year, beating the stuffing out of A&M colored the LSU coaching situation—this time with an upgrade for Ed Orgeron.

Mississippi State: A-

Frankly, the only reason this isn’t an A is that State finishes 5-7. They wildly outplayed Ole Miss, and over the course of the season, Nick Fitzgerald obliterated Dak Prescott’s running records. He still needs some work on passing, but there’s reason for optimism for the Bulldogs.

Texas A&M: C

This was a disappointing effort that ends a regular season that, as per A&M tradition, looked so promising, but ended in frustration. The offense was fine, but the defense was completely lost, which was pretty indefensible.

Auburn: C-

Sure, Alabama was good, but Auburn seemed to have no clue how to go at the Tide. When you combine that with running just 45 offensive plays for the game, it wasn’t going to be a good week.

Arkansas: D

Blowing a 24-7 halftime lead is always rough. Doing it against the worst team in the league is just mind-numbing. Ugly finish to what could have been a promising season.

Ole Miss: D-

Just a dog of an effort. Sure, they had injuries. Sure, they had bad luck. But this team that lost to Bama by five should’ve been able to sleepwalk to seven wins.

 

SEC EAST

Kentucky: A

An outstanding conclusion to a season that looked headed for disaster but ended up very nicely. Regaining control over their rivalry with Louisville could be a turning point.

Vanderbilt: A

Like Kentucky, Vandy’s last game may be a statement win. Derek Mason certainly looked like a coach who had a new lease on life. Glad to see Vandy win their way into a bowl instead of backing in based on APR.

Missouri: B+

All things considered, Barry Odom did a phenomenal job of keeping his team focused on improving after a horrific stretch run scuttled their season. It was a building season, but at least by the end, there was real building going on.

Georgia: C

The triple option is tricky, but for UGA to be outpassed by a ground-based attack that threw a total of 10 passes was a little insane. Kirby Smart received a pass on some things in 2016 that he won’t get in future seasons.

South Carolina: C-

It wasn’t a surprise that the Gamecocks didn’t pull the upset. Unlike Louisville, Clemson still had something to play for— and it showed. But it won’t help Muschamp to have a gulf like this between USC and its in-state rival.

Florida: C-

Jim McElwain picked a good time to end up in Gainesville. His teams have ridden rampaging defenses to division titles. But at some point, he’s going to need an offense. Like any time he expects to beat a good football team.

Tennessee: F

For the third game in a row, Tennessee’s defense was absolutely pathetic. Everyone knows there were injuries, but an FCS defense could’ve put up a better fight than the Vols. A decade out from UT’s last division title, it may be another decade before they get back to Atlanta.

 

Offense

Hall Passes

LSU: An underperforming offense got Les Miles fired, and a fired-up offense probably got Ed Orgeron hired. A record setting 285 yards for Derrius Guice and 324 yards passing for Danny Etling made for an impressive game.

Mississippi State: In a season of great rushing games, having two 190-yard rushers constitutes a statement. And 9.7 yards per carry is pretty hard to beat.

Detention

South Carolina: No, 218 yards wasn’t going to cut the mustard against Clemson. Jake Bentley looked very young and the Carolina ground game, while not awful, didn’t help him much.

Florida: Sure, Florida State isn’t bad. But 0 for 12 on third down, 1.9 yards per carry, 205 total yards? Hard to win with those numbers.

Defense

Hall Passes

Alabama: Could’ve just given them a season long hall pass. They held one of the most potent rushing attacks in college football to 66 yards, and Auburn as a team managed seven first downs and 182 yards, with a sub-20 minute time of possession.

Kentucky: It seems odd to give a defense a hall pass for allowing 38 points and 561 yards. But Kentucky forced four turnovers from Heisman favorite Lamar Jackson, and while it wasn’t pretty, it was exactly what was needed to give UK a shot to win.

Detention

Texas A&M: Sure, Derrius Guice is good. But Danny Etling shouldn’t look like Peyton Manning, and 39 points should have been enough to at least have A&M in the game.

Tennessee: Third straight 600-plus-yard effort against the Vols defense. They could probably play better with a team of actual volunteers.

Special Teams

Hall Pass

Florida: A special teams score WAS their offense, and they blocked a field goal and played well in their own kicking game.

Detention

South Carolina: On the whole it wasn’t awful, but watching the punter get crushed on a fake punt run was a face-palm moment.

Coaching

Hall Passes

Kentucky: Winning seven games in a regular season is something that hasn’t happened in Lexington since 2009, and Mark Stoops adapted very well to his personnel, never more than in this win at Louisville.

Vanderbilt: Derek Mason has survived a season in which his failure seemed almost guaranteed. But he laughed last by beating UT and taking Vandy back to a bowl.

Detention

Tennessee: Championship of what was that?

Texas A&M: Every year, A&M start out like a lion, and finishes like a lamb. Some of that is personnel, some of it is Kevin Sumlin.