1979 Reward Ranking (after bowl games)
| Rank | Name | W | L | T | Reward | AP | UPI |
| 1 | Alabama | 12 | 0 | 0 | 7.0607 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | SouthernCalifornia | 11 | 0 | 1 | 6.6072 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Houston | 11 | 1 | 0 | 6.2519 | 5 | 5 |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 11 | 1 | 0 | 5.8387 | 3 | 3 |
| 5 | Pittsburgh | 11 | 1 | 0 | 5.6243 | 7 | 6 |
| 6 | OhioState | 11 | 1 | 0 | 5.4582 | 4 | 4 |
| 7 | FloridaState | 11 | 1 | 0 | 5.2857 | 6 | 8 |
| 8 | Arkansas | 10 | 2 | 0 | 5.1199 | 8 | 9 |
| 9 | BrighamYoung | 11 | 1 | 0 | 5.0399 | 13 | 12 |
| 10 | Nebraska | 10 | 2 | 0 | 4.6584 | 9 | 7 |
| 11 | Texas | 9 | 3 | 0 | 4.1724 | 12 | 13 |
| 12 | Purdue | 10 | 2 | 0 | 4.1327 | 10 | 10 |
| 13 | Temple | 10 | 2 | 0 | 4.0689 | 17 | 17 |
| 14 | CentralMichigan | 10 | 0 | 1 | 4.0654 | NR | NR |
| 15 | McNeeseState | 11 | 1 | 0 | 4.0480 | NR | NR |
| 16 | Washington | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3.6649 | 11 | 11 |
| 17 | NorthCarolina | 8 | 3 | 1 | 3.2232 | 15 | 14 |
| 18 | Auburn | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.0552 | 16 | Prob? |
| 19 | Nevada-LasVegas | 9 | 1 | 2 | 2.8905 | NR | NR |
| 20 | Baylor | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.8040 | 14 | 15 |
| 21 | TexasA&M | 6 | 5 | 0 | 2.6203 | ||
| 22 | Tulane | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2.5870 | ||
| 23 | SanDiegoState | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.4910 | ||
| 24 | NotreDame | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.4039 | ||
| 25 | SouthCarolina | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.3480 | ||
| 26 | Clemson | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.3453 | ||
| 27 | PennState | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.3171 | 20 | 18 |
| 28 | NorthCarolinaState | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.2978 | ||
| 29 | Michigan | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.2480 | 18 | 19 |
| 30 | WakeForest | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.2357 | ||
| 31 | OklahomaState | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.1285 | ||
| 32 | Indiana | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.0947 | 19 | |
| 33 | Rutgers | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.0912 | ||
| 34 | UCLA | 5 | 6 | 0 | 2.0716 | ||
| 35 | Maryland | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.0239 | ||
| 36 | Tennessee-Chattanooga | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2.0149 | ||
| 37 | UtahState | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1.9672 | ||
| 38 | Missouri | 7 | 5 | 0 | 1.9568 |
20 |
|
| 39 | LouisianaState | 7 | 5 | 0 | 1.9214 | ||
| 40 | Syracuse | 7 | 5 | 0 | 1.8749 | ||
| 41 | SouthernMethodist | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1.8623 | ||
| 42 | Yale | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1.7114 | ||
| 43 | Minnesota | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1.7102 | ||
| 44 | WestVirginia | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1.6944 | ||
| 45 | TexasTech | 3 | 6 | 2 | 1.6893 | ||
| 46 | California | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1.6878 | ||
| 47 | Texas-Arlington | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1.6589 | ||
| 48 | Arizona | 6 | 5 | 1 | 1.6056 | ||
| 49 | ArizonaState | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1.6025 | ||
| 50 | Georgia | 6 |