Final OAF ranking (& ratings) for the 1996 college football season:
| Rank | Team Name | Rating | Record | AP | ESPN/USA Today | Bowl Game Results |
| 1 | FLORIDA | 123.0800 | 12-1 | 1 | 1 | Beat Florida State 52-20 |
| 2 | FLORIDA STATE | 116.0897 | 11-1 | 3 | 3 | Lost to Florida |
| 3 | OHIO STATE | 86.0082 | 11-1 | 2 | 2 | Beat Arizona State 20-17 |
| 4 | ARIZONA STATE | 85.2810 | 11-1 | 4 | 4 | Lost to Ohio State |
| 5 | NEBRASKA | 79.7571 | 11-2 | 6 | 6 | Beat Virginia Tech 41-21 |
| 6 | PENN STATE | 79.6408 | 11-2 | 7 | 7 | Beat Texas 38-15 |
| 7 | VIRGINIA TECH | 74.1156 | 10-2 | 13 | 12 | Lost to Nebraska |
| 8 | IOWA | 74.0850 | 9-3 | 18 | 18 | Beat Texas Tech 27-0 |
| 9 | COLORADO | 73.8705 | 10-2 | 8 | 8 | Beat Washington 33-21 |
| 10 | TENNESSEE | 73.7834 | 10-2 | 9 | 9 | Beat Northwestern 48-28 |
| 11 | ALABAMA | 73.1782 | 10-3 | 11 | 11 | Beat Michigan 17-14 |
| 12 | NORTH CAROLINA | 72.5716 | 10-2 | 10 | 10 | Beat West Virginia 20-13 |
| 13 | MICHIGAN | 72.5155 | 8-4 | 20 | 20 | Lost to Alabama |
| 14 | WASHINGTON | 71.7453 | 9-3 | 16 | 15 | Lost to Colorado |
| 15 | NORTHWESTERN | 68.9915 | 9-3 | 15 | 16 | Beat Virginia 31-21 |
| 16 | MIAMI (F) | 68.9901 | 9-3 | 14 | 14 | Lost to Tennessee |
| 17 | LSU | 68.5316 | 10-2 | 12 | 13 | Beat Clemson 10-7 |
| 18 | SYRACUSE | 68.3573 | 9-3 | 21 | 19 | Beat Houston 30-17 |
| 19 | BYU | 67.6178 | 14-1 | 5 | 5 | Beat Kansas State 19-15 |
| 20 | TEXAS | 65.6453 | 8-5 | 23 | 23 | Lost to Penn State |
| 21 | KANSAS STATE | 65.2355 | 9-3 | 17 | 17 | Lost to BYU |
| 22 | EAST CAROLINA | 62.5691 | ||||
| 23 | VIRGINIA | 61.8380 | ||||
| 24 | WEST VIRGINIA | 61.7341 | ||||
| 25 | WISCONSIN | 60.7963 | ||||
| 26 | NOTRE DAME | 58.9153 | ||||
| 27 | HOUSTON | 58.7568 | ||||
| 28 | STANFORD | 58.1093 | ||||
| 29 | MICHIGAN STATE | 56.6336 | ||||
| 30 | SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI | 56.2398 | ||||
| 31 | USC | 55.2299 | ||||
| 32 | PURDUE | 54.5246 | ||||
| 33 | SOUTH CAROLINA | 54.0879 | ||||
| 34 | CLEMSON | 53.3310 | ||||
| 35 | AUBURN | 51.7442 | ||||
| 36 | MINNESOTA | 51.5646 | ||||
| 37 | OREGON | 51.1694 | ||||
| 38 | UCLA | 51.1018 | ||||
| 39 | ARMY | 51.0162 | ||||
| 40 | MISSISSIPPI STATE | 50.7949 | ||||
| 41 | MEMPHIS STATE | 50.2998 | ||||
| 42 | ARIZONA | 50.0944 | ||||
| 43 | CINCINNATI | 49.6794 | ||||
| 44 | WASHINGTON STATE | 49.3563 | ||||
| 45 | NAVY | 49.0441 | ||||
| 46 | TEXAS TECH | 48.9855 | ||||
| 47 | LOUISVILLE | 48.6982 | ||||
| 48 | CALIFORNIA | 48.2988 | ||||
| 49 | KENTUCKY | 47.9048 | ||||
| 50 | GEORGIA | 47.5215 | ||||
| 51 | RICE | 46.6853 | ||||
| 52 | ARKANSAS | 46.3895 | ||||
| 53 | INDIANA | 46.2145 | ||||
| 54 | MARYLAND | 46.2126 |