Final OAF ranking (& ratings) for the 1976 college football season:
| Rank | Team Name | Rating | Record | AP | UPI | Bowl Game Results |
| 1 | PITTSBURGH | 117.8471 | 12-0 | 1 | 1 | Beat Georgia 27-3 |
| 2 | USC | 84.1511 | 11-1 | 2 | 2 | Beat Michigan 14-6 |
| 3 | MICHIGAN | 83.5714 | 10-2 | 3 | 3 | Lost to USC |
| 4 | TEXAS A+M | 83.5449 | 10-2 | 7 | 8 | Beat Florida 37-14 |
| 5 | OHIO STATE | 80.7988 | 9-2-1 | 6 | 5 | Beat Colorado 27-10 |
| 6 | GEORGIA | 79.8907 | 10-2 | 10 | 10 | Lost to Pittsburgh |
| 7 | HOUSTON | 78.5158 | 10-2 | 4 | 4 | Beat Maryland 30-21 |
| 8 | MARYLAND | 77.9361 | 11-1 | 8 | 11 | Lost to Houston |
| 9 | COLORADO | 73.7343 | 8-4 | 16 | 16 | Lost to Ohio State |
| 10 | NEBRASKA | 72.8248 | 9-3-1 | 9 | 7 | Beat Texas Tech 27-24 |
| 11 | TEXAS TECH | 72.2451 | 10-2 | 13 | 13 | Lost to Nebraska |
| 12 | OKLAHOMA STATE | 71.2121 | 9-3 | 14 | 14 | Beat BYU 49-21 |
| 13 | KENTUCKY | 71.0215 | 8-4 | 18 | 19 | Beat North Carolina 21-0 |
| 14 | OKLAHOMA | 70.9108 | 9-2 | 5 | 6 | Beat Wyoming 41-7 |
| 15 | NOTRE DAME | 70.5843 | 9-3 | 12 | 12 | Beat Penn State 20-9 |
| 16 | ALABAMA | 70.5629 | 9-3 | 11 | 9 | Beat UCLA 36-6 |
| 17 | UCLA | 69.9832 | 9-2-1 | 15 | 15 | Lost to Alabama |
| 18 | IOWA STATE | 69.7144 | 8-3 | 19 | 19 | No Bowl Game |
| 19 | FLORIDA | 69.5640 | 8-4 | NR | NR | Lost to Texas A+M |
| 20 | MISSISSIPPI STATE | 69.4444 | 9-2 | 20 | NR | No Bowl Game |
| 21 | LSU | 67.8583 | ||||
| 22 | BAYLOR | 66.9694 | ||||
| 23 | KANSAS | 65.9801 | ||||
| 24 | MISSOURI | 65.4004 | ||||
| 25 | TEXAS | 62.4856 | ||||
| 26 | NORTH CAROLINA | 60.5757 | ||||
| 27 | PENN STATE | 60.5662 | ||||
| 28 | PURDUE | 58.8020 | ||||
| 29 | ARKANSAS | 58.3197 | ||||
| 30 | INDIANA | 57.9417 | ||||
| 31 | TENNESSEE | 56.9650 | ||||
| 32 | MISSISSIPPI | 56.0430 | ||||
| 33 | GEORGIA TECH | 55.9318 | ||||
| 34 | ILLINOIS | 55.4629 | ||||
| 35 | RUTGERS | 55.2979 | ||||
| 36 | MIAMI (F) | 54.6508 | ||||
| 37 | DUKE | 54.3543 | ||||
| 38 | SOUTH CAROLINA | 53.9380 | ||||
| 39 | NORTH CAROLINA STATE | 53.8066 | ||||
| 40 | WISCONSIN | 53.3272 | ||||
| 41 | IOWA | 53.3127 | ||||
| 42 | WAKE FOREST | 53.1337 | ||||
| 43 | CLEMSON | 53.0922 | ||||
| 44 | MINNESOTA | 52.7475 | ||||
| 45 | NAVY | 52.5388 | ||||
| 46 | MICHIGAN STATE | 51.7189 | ||||
| 47 | SMU | 51.3259 | ||||
| 48 | EAST CAROLINA | 50.9941 | ||||
| 49 | FLORIDA STATE | 50.2740 | ||||
| 50 | AUBURN | 49.9634 | ||||
| 51 | STANFORD | 49.4080 | ||||
| 52 | CINCINNATI | 48.9945 | ||||
| 53 | BOSTON COLLEGE | 48.7945 | ||||
| 54 | WEST VIRGINIA | 47.8755 | ||||
| 55 | FURMAN |