1974 Reward Ranking (before bowl games)
| Rank | Name | W | L | T | Reward | AP | UPI |
| 1 | Alabama | 11 | 0 | 0 | 6.6058 | 2 | 1 |
| 2 | Oklahoma | 11 | 0 | 0 | 6.3969 | 1 | Prob. |
| 3 | OhioState | 10 | 1 | 0 | 5.3975 | 3 | 2 |
| 4 | Michigan | 10 | 1 | 0 | 5.0346 | 4 | 3 |
| 5 | SouthernCalifornia | 9 | 1 | 1 | 4.4506 | 5 | 4 |
| 6 | Auburn | 9 | 2 | 0 | 4.3721 | 6 | 5 |
| 7 | Miami(Ohio) | 9 | 0 | 1 | 4.2563 | 15 | 13 |
| 8 | NorthCarolinaState | 9 | 2 | 0 | 3.7972 | 13 | 9 |
| 9 | NotreDame | 9 | 2 | 0 | 3.7038 | 9 | 8 |
| 10 | PennState | 9 | 2 | 0 | 3.5680 | 7 | 6 |
| 11 | Maryland | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.3009 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | Baylor | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.2093 | 12 | 12 |
| 13 | Texas | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.1377 | 11 | 10 |
| 14 | Florida | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.0977 | 18 | 14 |
| 15 | MississippiState | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.9266 | ||
| 16 | TexasA&M | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.8335 | 16 | 16 |
| 17 | MichiganState | 7 | 3 | 1 | 2.7526 | 14 | NR |
| 18 | Yale | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2.7358 | ||
| 19 | Nebraska | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.6730 | 8 | 7 |
| 20 | Tennessee | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2.5178 | ||
| 21 | Vanderbilt | 7 | 3 | 1 | 2.3330 | ||
| 22 | Arizona | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2.2808 | 19 | 18 |
| 23 | Temple | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2.2458 | ||
| 24 | Harvard | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2.0533 | ||
| 25 | Wisconsin | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.9744 | 20T | |
| 26 | UCLA | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1.9690 | ||
| 27 | Arkansas | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1.9265 | ||
| 28 | Missouri | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.8683 | ||
| 29 | California | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1.8588 | ||
| 30 | Houston | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1.8538 | ||
| 31 | Clemson | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.8264 | ||
| 32 | Georgia | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.7883 | ||
| 33 | LouisianaState | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1.6995 | ||
| 34 | SouthernMethodist | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1.6714 | ||
| 35 | Tulsa | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1.6359 | NR | 20 |
| 36 | OklahomaState | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.6227 | ||
| 37 | TexasTech | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1.6189 | ||
| 38 | Stanford | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1.5379 | ||
| 39 | NorthCarolina | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.5174 | ||
| 40 | Kentucky | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.5047 | ||
| 41 | Pittsburgh | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.4907 | 20T | NR |
| 42 | SanDiegoState | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1.4740 | ||
| 43 | GeorgiaTech | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.4206 | ||
| 44 | Lamar | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1.4065 | ||
| 45 | Duke | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.3876 | ||
| 46 | Colorado | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1.3645 | ||
| 47 | Illinois | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1.3370 | ||
| 48 | UtahState | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1.3235 | ||
| 49 | BostonCollege | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1.2652 | ||
| 50 | Purdue | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1.1163 |