Final OAF ranking (& ratings) for the 1986 college football season:
| Rank | Team Name | Rating | Record | AP | UPI | Bowl Game Results |
| 1 | PENN STATE | 119.0178 | 12-0 | 1 | 1 | Beat Miami (F) 14-10 |
| 2 | OKLAHOMA | 114.5320 | 11-1 | 3 | 3 | Beat Arkansas 42-8 |
| 3 | MIAMI (F) | 110.0618 | 11-1 | 2 | 2 | Lost to Penn State |
| 4 | UCLA | 81.7169 | 8-3-1 | 14 | 14 | Beat BYU 31-10 |
| 5 | ARIZONA STATE | 80.7926 | 10-1-1 | 4 | 5 | Beat Michigan 22-15 |
| 6 | ARIZONA | 75.7509 | 9-3 | 11 | 10 | Beat North Carolina 30-21 |
| 7 | OREGON | 72.4854 | 5-6 | NR | NR | No Bowl Game |
| 8 | ALABAMA | 71.7812 | 10-3 | 9 | 9 | Beat Washington 28-6 |
| 9 | WASHINGTON | 71.6842 | 8-3-1 | 18 | 17 | Lost to Alabama |
| 10 | STANFORD | 68.4714 | 8-4 | 24 | 21..27 | Lost to Clemson |
| 11 | NEBRASKA | 66.8861 | 10-2 | 5 | 4 | Beat LSU 30-15 |
| 12 | AUBURN | 66.1899 | 10-3 | 6 | 8 | Beat USC 16-7 |
| 13 | LSU | 66.1242 | 9-3 | 10 | 11 | Lost to Nebraska |
| 14 | WASHINGTON STATE | 66.0810 | 3-7-1 | NR | NR | No Bowl Game |
| 15 | USC | 65.4280 | 7-5 | 28 | 21..27 | Lost to Auburn |
| 16 | ARKANSAS | 65.0621 | 9-3 | 15 | 16 | Lost to Oklahoma |
| 17 | SAN JOSE STATE | 65.0610 | 10-2 | 22 | 21..27 | Beat Miami (O) 37-7 |
| 18 | BAYLOR | 63.5193 | 9-3 | 12 | 13 | Beat Colorado 21-9 |
| 19 | OHIO STATE | 61.8704 | 10-3 | 7 | 6 | Beat Texas A+M 28-12 |
| 20 | TEXAS A+M | 61.1085 | 9-3 | 13 | 12 | Lost to Ohio State |
| 21 | MICHIGAN | 60.5600 | 11-2 | 8 | 7 | Lost to Arizona State |
| 22 | NOTRE DAME | 59.9234 | ||||
| 23 | BOSTON COLLEGE | 59.6329 | ||||
| 24 | CALIFORNIA | 59.4426 | ||||
| 25 | GEORGIA | 58.7919 | ||||
| 26 | TEXAS | 57.5708 | ||||
| 27 | MISSISSIPPI | 57.0806 | ||||
| 28 | SMU | 56.1305 | ||||
| 29 | CLEMSON | 56.1254 | ||||
| 30 | TEXAS TECH | 55.8438 | ||||
| 31 | COLORADO | 55.0679 | ||||
| 32 | FLORIDA | 52.3182 | ||||
| 33 | TENNESSEE | 51.7058 | ||||
| 34 | FLORIDA STATE | 50.5801 | ||||
| 35 | KENTUCKY | 50.2227 | ||||
| 36 | MARYLAND | 49.9978 | ||||
| 37 | VIRGINIA TECH | 49.1793 | ||||
| 38 | NORTH CAROLINA STATE | 48.2664 | ||||
| 39 | SYRACUSE | 48.2639 | ||||
| 40 | NORTH CAROLINA | 47.9578 | ||||
| 41 | PITTSBURGH | 47.8833 | ||||
| 42 | SOUTH CAROLINA | 47.8029 | ||||
| 43 | MISSISSIPPI STATE | 46.9170 | ||||
| 44 | OREGON STATE | 46.4963 | ||||
| 45 | TEMPLE | 45.7338 | ||||
| 46 | RUTGERS | 44.9718 | ||||
| 47 | WEST VIRGINIA | 44.6974 | ||||
| 48 | ARMY | 43.1757 | ||||
| 49 | WAKE FOREST | 41.5912 | ||||
| 50 | GEORGIA TECH | 41.5289 | ||||
| 51 | IOWA | 41.2850 | ||||
| 52 | VIRGINIA | 41.1382 | ||||
| 53 | BYU | 40.6077 | ||||
| 54 | SAN DIEGO STATE | 40.2344 | ||||
| 55 | FRESNO STATE |