1982 Reward Ranking (before bowl games)
| Rank | Name | W | L | T | Reward | AP | UPI |
| 1 | Georgia | 11 | 0 | 0 | 7.7910 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | PennState | 10 | 1 | 0 | 7.2369 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Nebraska | 11 | 1 | 0 | 6.4203 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | UCLA | 9 | 1 | 1 | 5.7862 | 5 | 5 |
| 5 | SouthernMethodist | 10 | 0 | 1 | 5.5934 | 4 | 4 |
| 6 | Pittsburgh | 9 | 2 | 0 | 5.4662 | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | Clemson | 9 | 1 | 1 | 5.4623 | 7 | Prob. |
| 8 | WestVirginia | 9 | 2 | 0 | 5.4492 | 10 | 9 |
| 9 | Washington | 9 | 2 | 0 | 5.0946 | 9 | 8 |
| 10 | ArizonaState | 9 | 2 | 0 | 5.0259 | 11 | 11 |
| 11 | Florida | 8 | 3 | 0 | 4.6042 | NR | 20 |
| 12 | NewMexico | 10 | 1 | 0 | 4.3572 | NR | NR |
| 13 | SouthernCalifornia | 8 | 3 | 0 | 4.2848 | 15 | Prob. |
| 14 | Texas | 9 | 2 | 0 | 4.1637 | 8 | 7 |
| 15 | LouisianaState | 8 | 2 | 1 | 4.0125 | 13 | 13 |
| 16 | Tulsa | 10 | 1 | 0 | 3.8883 | 20 | 18 |
| 17 | Oklahoma | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.8739 | 12 | 10 |
| 18 | Auburn | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.8103 | 18 | 15 |
| 19 | Maryland | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.7588 | 16 | 14 |
| 20 | Vanderbilt | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.7513 | ||
| 21 | FloridaState | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.2739 | NR | 20 |
| 22 | Alabama | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3.2500 | ||
| 23 | Arkansas | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3.1293 | 14 | 12 |
| 24 | BostonCollege | 8 | 2 | 1 | 2.9910 | ||
| 25 | BrighamYoung | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.9786 | ||
| 26 | FresnoState | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2.8450 | ||
| 27 | NotreDame | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2.5798 | ||
| 28 | Michigan | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.5085 | 19 | 17 |
| 29 | NorthCarolina | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.3999 | ||
| 30 | California | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.3770 | ||
| 31 | OhioState | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.3393 | 17 | 16 |
| 32 | Arizona | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2.1912 | ||
| 33 | Miami(Florida) | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.9177 | ||
| 34 | SanJoseState | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1.5362 | ||
| 35 | Stanford | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1.4355 | ||
| 36 | Tennessee | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1.3029 | ||
| 37 | Iowa | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.2844 | ||
| 38 | SouthernMississippi | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.2066 | ||
| 39 | NorthCarolinaState | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.0581 | ||
| 40 | MississippiState | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0.9032 | ||
| 41 | Illinois | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0.8209 | ||
| 42 | KansasState | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0.8186 | ||
| 43 | Missouri | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0.7867 | ||
| 44 | Duke | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0.7769 | ||
| 45 | GeorgiaTech | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0.7418 | ||
| 46 | VirginiaTech | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0.6970 | ||
| 47 | AirForce | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0.5388 | ||
| 48 | SanDiegoState | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0.5356 | ||
| 49 | Houston | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0.3158 | ||
| 50 | Hawaii | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0.295 |