1991 Reward Ranking (before bowl games)
| Rank | Name | W | L | T | Reward | AP | ESPN/USA Today |
| 1 | Miami(Florida) | 11 | 0 | 0 | 7.9085 | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | Washington | 11 | 0 | 0 | 7.9008 | 2 | 1 |
| 3 | Florida | 10 | 1 | 0 | 7.6118 | 3 | 4 |
| 4 | Alabama | 10 | 1 | 0 | 6.9992 | 8 | 8 |
| 5 | Michigan | 10 | 1 | 0 | 6.8877 | 4 | 3 |
| 6 | FloridaState | 10 | 2 | 0 | 6.5881 | 5 | 6 |
| 7 | Syracuse | 9 | 2 | 0 | 5.9285 | 16 | 16 |
| 8 | Tennessee | 9 | 2 | 0 | 5.7629 | 10 | 10 |
| 9 | EastCarolina | 10 | 1 | 0 | 5.7076 | 12 | 13 |
| 10 | Iowa | 10 | 1 | 0 | 5.6672 | 7 | 7 |
| 11 | Nebraska | 9 | 1 | 1 | 5.2569 | 11 | 11 |
| 12 | TexasA&M | 10 | 1 | 0 | 5.1983 | 9 | 9 |
| 13 | Clemson | 9 | 1 | 1 | 5.0930 | 13 | 12 |
| 14 | PennState | 10 | 2 | 0 | 5.0800 | 6 | 5 |
| 15 | California | 9 | 2 | 0 | 4.9276 | 14 | 14 |
| 16 | Stanford | 8 | 3 | 0 | 4.4494 | 17 | 17 |
| 17 | Tulsa | 9 | 2 | 0 | 4.3381 | 23 | 25 |
| 18 | NotreDame | 9 | 3 | 0 | 4.3329 | 18 | 18 |
| 19 | Georgia | 8 | 3 | 0 | 4.1277 | 24 | 24 |
| 20 | Colorado | 8 | 2 | 1 | 4.0238 | 15 | 15 |
| 21 | NorthCarolinaState | 9 | 2 | 0 | 3.9608 | 21 | 21 |
| 22 | BowlingGreenState | 10 | 1 | 0 | 3.8060 | 30 | NR |
| 23 | UCLA | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.7942 | 22 | 23 |
| 24 | Virginia | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3.5917 | 19 | 19 |
| 25 | Baylor | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.1764 | 27 | NR |
| 26 | OhioState | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3.1104 | 25 | 22 |
| 27 | Oklahoma | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2.9163 | 20 | 20 |
| 28 | FresnoState | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2.6924 | 29 | NR |
| 29 | BrighamYoung | 8 | 3 | 1 | 2.5469 | 26 | NR |
| 30 | MississippiState | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.3845 | 28 | NR |
| 31 | AirForce | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2.2083 | 32T | NR |
| 32 | GeorgiaTech | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2.1923 | NR | NR |
| 33 | KansasState | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.9940 | 32T | NR |
| 34 | SanDiegoState | 8 | 3 | 1 | 1.8537 | 31 | NR |
| 35 | WestVirginia | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.5043 | ||
| 36 | Indiana | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1.3469 | ||
| 37 | NorthCarolina | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.2661 | ||
| 38 | CentralMichigan | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1.2585 | ||
| 39 | LouisianaTech | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1.2568 | ||
| 40 | Illinois | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.2377 | ||
| 41 | Pittsburgh | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.2165 | ||
| 42 | Kansas | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.1788 | ||
| 43 | LouisianaState | 5 | 6 | 0 | 1.1520 | ||
| 44 | TexasChristian | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1.1098 | ||
| 45 | ArizonaState | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1.0798 | ||
| 46 | Vanderbilt | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0.9811 | ||
| 47 | Arkansas | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0.8476 | ||
| 48 | Auburn | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0.7491 | ||
| 49 | Memphis | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0.7206 | ||
| 50 | Texas | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0.6714 |