1986 Reward Ranking (after bowl games)
| Rank | Name | W | L | T | Reward | AP | UPI |
| 1 | PennState | 12 | 0 | 0 | 8.2481 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Oklahoma | 11 | 1 | 0 | 6.9280 | 3 | 3 |
| 3 | Miami(Florida) | 11 | 1 | 0 | 6.8690 | 2 | 2 |
| 4 | ArizonaState | 10 | 1 | 1 | 6.7711 | 4 | 5 |
| 5 | Auburn | 10 | 2 | 0 | 5.3524 | 6 | 8 |
| 6 | Nebraska | 10 | 2 | 0 | 5.2621 | 5 | 4 |
| 7 | Michigan | 11 | 2 | 0 | 5.1547 | 8 | 7 |
| 8 | Alabama | 10 | 3 | 0 | 4.9622 | 9 | 9 |
| 9 | Arizona | 9 | 3 | 0 | 4.8394 | 11 | 10 |
| 10 | UCLA | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4.5690 | 14 | 14 |
| 11 | Washington | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4.4480 | 18 | 17 |
| 12 | LouisianaState | 9 | 3 | 0 | 4.2981 | 10 | 11 |
| 13 | OhioState | 10 | 3 | 0 | 4.2329 | 7 | 6 |
| 14 | Clemson | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4.1418 | 17 | 19 |
| 15 | VirginiaTech | 9 | 2 | 1 | 3.9516 | 20 | "21T" |
| 16 | Arkansas | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3.9167 | 15 | 16 |
| 17 | TexasA&M | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3.8983 | 13 | 12 |
| 18 | SanJoseState | 10 | 2 | 0 | 3.8403 | 22 | "21T" |
| 19 | BostonCollege | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3.6703 | 19 | 18 |
| 20 | Baylor | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3.6585 | 12 | 13 |
| 21 | Stanford | 8 | 4 | 0 | 3.5477 | 24T | "21T" |
| 22 | Mississippi | 8 | 3 | 1 | 3.2542 | 26 | NR |
| 23 | Iowa | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3.2049 | 16 | 15 |
| 24 | Georgia | 8 | 4 | 0 | 3.0334 | 24T | NR |
| 25 | NorthCarolinaState | 8 | 3 | 1 | 2.6819 | 23 | "21T" |
| 26 | SouthernCalifornia | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2.6693 | 28 | "21T" |
| 27 | FresnoState | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2.6369 | ||
| 28 | Florida | 6 | 5 | 0 | 2.1709 | ||
| 29 | SanDiegoState | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2.0673 | ||
| 30 | Oregon | 5 | 6 | 0 | 2.0508 | ||
| 31 | NotreDame | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1.8778 | ||
| 32 | SouthernMethodist | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.8671 | ||
| 33 | NorthCarolina | 7 | 4 | 1 | 1.7492 | ||
| 34 | FloridaState | 7 | 4 | 1 | 1.7237 | ||
| 35 | Temple | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.7217 | ||
| 36 | Colorado | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1.5969 | ||
| 37 | TexasTech | 7 | 5 | 0 | 1.5426 | ||
| 38 | MississippiState | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.4601 | ||
| 39 | Rutgers | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1.4454 | ||
| 40 | Pittsburgh | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1.4204 | ||
| 41 | Miami(Ohio) | 8 | 4 | 0 | 1.2760 | ||
| 42 | Kentucky | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1.2695 | ||
| 43 | Maryland | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1.0836 | ||
| 44 | Texas | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1.0398 | ||
| 45 | BrighamYoung | 8 | 5 | 0 | 1.0382 | ||
| 46 | Tennessee | 7 | 5 | 0 | 1.0249 | ||
| 47 | MichiganState | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.0176 | ||
| 48 | GeorgiaTech | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0.9995 | ||
| 49 | Minnesota | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0.9815 | ||
| 50 | Cincinnati | 5 | 6 | 0 |