2004 Reward Ranking (after bowl games)
| Rank | Name | W | L | Reward | AP | ESPN/USA Today |
| 1 | SouthernCalifornia | 13 | 0 | 8.7368 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Auburn | 13 | 0 | 7.7241 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Oklahoma | 12 | 1 | 7.4260 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Utah | 12 | 0 | 6.8443 | 4 | 5 |
| 5 | Texas | 11 | 1 | 6.6297 | 5 | 4 |
| 6 | Louisville | 11 | 1 | 5.8957 | 6 | 7 |
| 7 | BoiseState | 11 | 1 | 5.7321 | 12 | 13 |
| 8 | California | 10 | 2 | 5.6716 | 9 | 9 |
| 9 | Georgia | 10 | 2 | 5.1663 | 7 | 6 |
| 10 | Iowa | 10 | 2 | 5.1649 | 8 | 8 |
| 11 | ArizonaState | 9 | 3 | 4.4984 | 19 | 20 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 10 | 3 | 4.4927 | 13 | 15 |
| 13 | VirginiaTech | 10 | 3 | 4.3937 | 10 | 10 |
| 14 | Michigan | 9 | 3 | 4.1127 | 14 | 12 |
| 15 | Miami(Florida) | 9 | 3 | 4.0700 | 11 | 11 |
| 16 | LouisianaState | 9 | 3 | 3.9541 | 16 | 16 |
| 17 | TexasTech | 8 | 4 | 3.5517 | 18 | 17 |
| 18 | Wisconsin | 9 | 3 | 3.4805 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | FloridaState | 9 | 3 | 3.3216 | 15 | 14 |
| 20 | Navy | 10 | 2 | 3.2293 | 24 | 24 |
| 21 | FresnoState | 9 | 3 | 2.9841 | 22 | 22 |
| 22 | OhioState | 8 | 4 | 2.7141 | 20 | 19 |
| 23 | BostonCollege | 9 | 3 | 2.6988 | 21 | 21 |
| 24 | Virginia | 8 | 4 | 2.4794 | 23 | 23 |
| 25 | TexasA&M | 7 | 5 | 2.4609 | 28 | 30 |
| 26 | OregonState | 7 | 5 | 2.1781 | NR | 33 |
| 27 | OklahomaState | 7 | 5 | 2.1761 | NR | NR |
| 28 | Texas-ElPaso | 8 | 4 | 2.0717 | 37 | 38T |
| 29 | Pittsburgh | 8 | 4 | 1.9324 | 25 | 28 |
| 30 | BowlingGreenState | 9 | 3 | 1.9092 | 27 | 27 |
| 31 | NorthCarolina | 6 | 6 | 1.8348 | NR | NR |
| 32 | Colorado | 8 | 5 | 1.6978 | 31 | 31 |
| 33 | Purdue | 7 | 5 | 1.6745 | 33 | 35 |
| 34 | NorthernIllinois | 9 | 3 | 1.6581 | 29 | 29 |
| 35 | WestVirginia | 8 | 4 | 1.6423 | 30 | 26 |
| 36 | NotreDame | 6 | 6 | 1.6286 | NR | NR |
| 37 | Florida | 7 | 5 | 1.4645 | 26 | 25 |
| 38 | NewMexico | 7 | 5 | 1.4577 | ||
| 39 | Clemson | 6 | 5 | 1.3643 | ||
| 40 | GeorgiaTech | 7 | 5 | 1.3501 | ||
| 41 | Connecticut | 8 | 4 | 1.2972 | ||
| 42 | Memphis | 8 | 4 | 1.2369 | ||
| 43 | NorthCarolinaState | 5 | 6 | 1.1684 | ||
| 44 | WashingtonState | 5 | 6 | 1.1032 | ||
| 45 | UCLA | 6 | 6 | 1.0508 | ||
| 46 | Northwestern | 6 | 6 | 1.0052 | ||
| 47 | IowaState | 7 | 5 | 0.9988 | ||
| 48 | BrighamYoung | 5 | 6 | 0.9769 | ||
| 49 | LouisianaTech | 6 | 6 | 0.9141 | ||
| 50 | Wyoming | 7 | 5 | 0.9120 | ||
| 51 | Maryland | 5 | 6 | 0.8803 | ||
| 52 | Oregon | 5 | 6 | 0.8611 | ||
| 53 | Arkansas | 5 | 6 | 0.8360 | ||
| 54 | Toledo | 9 | 4 | 0.8157 | ||
| 55 | Nebraska | 5 | 6 | 0.7076 | ||
| 56 | SouthCarolina | 6 | 5 | 0.7023 | ||
| 57 | Minnesota |