1996 Reward Ranking (before bowl games)
| Rank | Name | W | L | Reward | AP | ESPN/USA Today |
| 1 | FloridaState | 11 | 0 | 8.4916 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | ArizonaState | 11 | 0 | 7.8735 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Florida | 11 | 1 | 6.8833 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | OhioState | 10 | 1 | 6.6981 | 4 | 4 |
| 5 | VirginiaTech | 10 | 1 | 5.9825 | 10 | 9 |
| 6 | Nebraska | 10 | 2 | 5.7161 | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | PennState | 10 | 2 | 5.5947 | 7 | 7 |
| 8 | BrighamYoung | 13 | 1 | 5.3656 | 5 | 5 |
| 9 | Colorado | 9 | 2 | 5.2114 | 8 | 8 |
| 10 | Washington | 9 | 2 | 5.1574 | 13 | 12 |
| 11 | NorthCarolina | 9 | 2 | 5.0806 | 12 | 13 |
| 12 | Northwestern | 9 | 2 | 4.9888 | 11 | 11 |
| 13 | Tennessee | 9 | 2 | 4.9154 | 9 | 10 |
| 14 | Michigan | 8 | 3 | 4.7594 | 15 | 17 |
| 15 | LouisianaState | 9 | 2 | 4.6635 | 17 | 16 |
| 16 | KansasState | 9 | 2 | 4.6487 | 14 | 14 |
| 17 | Army | 10 | 1 | 4.5202 | 24 | 24 |
| 18 | Alabama | 9 | 3 | 4.2847 | 16 | 15 |
| 19 | Syracuse | 8 | 3 | 4.1800 | 23 | 22 |
| 20 | Miami(Florida) | 8 | 3 | 4.1188 | 19 | 19 |
| 21 | NotreDame | 8 | 3 | 4.1176 | 18 | 18 |
| 22 | Iowa | 8 | 3 | 3.9546 | 21 | 21 |
| 23 | SouthernMississippi | 8 | 3 | 3.7399 | 28 | 30 |
| 24 | EastCarolina | 8 | 3 | 3.7006 | 27 | 27 |
| 25 | WestVirginia | 8 | 3 | 3.4045 | 25 | 25 |
| 26 | Wyoming | 10 | 2 | 3.1904 | 22 | 23 |
| 27 | Virginia | 7 | 4 | 3.1440 | 26 | 26 |
| 28 | Texas | 8 | 4 | 2.9537 | 20 | 20 |
| 29 | Utah | 8 | 3 | 2.5937 | NR | NR |
| 30 | Houston | 7 | 4 | 2.5342 | 31T | 33 |
| 31 | Clemson | 7 | 4 | 2.4909 | 31T | 32 |
| 32 | Navy | 8 | 3 | 2.4705 | 34 | 34 |
| 33 | Auburn | 7 | 4 | 2.3807 | 29 | 28 |
| 34 | Rice | 7 | 4 | 2.1984 | NR | NR |
| 35 | SanDiegoState | 8 | 3 | 1.9586 | NR | 31 |
| 36 | TexasTech | 7 | 4 | 1.9191 | 30 | 29 |
| 37 | SouthernCalifornia | 6 | 6 | 1.7098 | ||
| 38 | Wisconsin | 7 | 5 | 1.5022 | ||
| 39 | SouthCarolina | 6 | 5 | 1.4843 | ||
| 40 | UCLA | 5 | 6 | 1.4410 | ||
| 41 | MichiganState | 6 | 5 | 1.3615 | ||
| 42 | Georgia | 5 | 6 | 1.2233 | ||
| 43 | Stanford | 6 | 5 | 1.1997 | ||
| 44 | Oregon | 6 | 5 | 1.0767 | ||
| 45 | California | 6 | 5 | 0.9837 | ||
| 46 | AirForce | 6 | 5 | 0.9806 | ||
| 47 | BostonCollege | 5 | 7 | 0.9455 | ||
| 48 | MississippiState | 5 | 6 | 0.8890 | ||
| 49 | Arizona | 5 | 6 | 0.8722 | ||
| 50 | Missouri | 5 | 6 | 0.8576 | ||
| 51 | GeorgiaTech | 5 | 6 | 0.8330 | ||
| 52 | Louisville | 5 | 6 | 0.7946 | ||
| 53 | Cincinnati | 6 | 5 | 0.7046 | ||
| 54 | WashingtonState | 5 | 6 | 0.6997 | ||
| 55 | BallState | 8 | 3 | 0.6463 | ||
| 56 | ColoradoState | 7 | 5 | 0.6159 | ||
| 57 | Nevada |