User blog comment:DipperBelchBLAH/Can Cody Survive a Season without Sierra's Help?/@comment-28182423-20161112064335/@comment-24152851-20161112065326

Cody didn't "float" exactly, because it was justified why he made it that far; Sierra. Cody was carried through the season, which is not the same as floating.

There are more reasons than those you mentioned as to why people say he didn't deserve it. Because unlike other characters who made it unexpectedly far, Cody offered very little plot that made his stay enjoyable. All he had going was "Cody stalked by Sierra" and "Cody loves Gwen". It wasn't until every other significant character got booted that the writers decided to make him relevant to Alejandro and Heather.