The 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with Penn State winning the national championship. Coached by

Joe Paterno Joseph Vincent Paterno (; December 21, 1926 – January 22, 2012), sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions from 1966 to 2 ...

, they defeated Miami (Fl) 14–10 in the

Fiesta Bowl The Fiesta Bowl is an American college football bowl game played annually in the Phoenix metropolitan area. From its beginning in 1971 until 2006, the game was hosted at the Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Since 2007, the game has been pl ...

. This Fiesta Bowl was the first in the game's history to decide the national championship, launching it into the top tier of bowls. Miami came into the game No. 1 and Penn State No. 2. In a move that would come to symbolize the game for years to come, Miami arrived wearing combat fatigues while Penn State arrived wearing suits and ties. Despite all the hype surrounding Miami, Penn State's defense harassed and harried

Heisman trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and har ...

winner

Vinny Testaverde Vincent Frank Testaverde Sr. (; born November 13, 1963) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 21 seasons. He played college football at Miami, where he was an All-American and won the H ...

throughout the Fiesta Bowl. The Hurricanes committed seven turnovers, including five interceptions thrown by Testaverde – the last of which, in the end zone with 18 seconds left, won the game for the Nittany Lions.

Conference and program changes

*The

Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the third-oldest collegiate athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the midwest. History The MVC was established ...

ended the hybrid nature of the conference which featured Division I-AA programs

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

Illinois State Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...

, Indiana State,

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of the Upland South than the Mi ...

, and West Texas State. Two of the league's members,

Tulsa Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region wit ...

and

Wichita State Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study ...

, became independents and remained in Division I-A.

Rule changes

*Kickoffs are moved from the 40-yard line to the 35-yard line, mirroring a change made in

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

by the NFL, and receivers may not line up closer than 10 yards from the spot of the kickoff. *The definition of "Roughing the passer" is expanded to prohibit throwing passers to the ground after the ball is released. *The definition of a "catch" is clarified to require players maintain control of a ball when returning to the ground, and an incomplete pass will be called if there is doubt in the official's mind that the catch was made. *The penalty for batting loose balls forward in the field of play or anywhere in the end zone now includes loss of down. *Clipping that occurs behind the scrimmage line will be enforced from the previous spot. *The loss of down penalty for ineligible man downfield penalties is removed.

Conference standings

Regular season

September

Defending champion

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

was No. 1 in the preseason AP Poll, followed by No. 2

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

, No. 3

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

, No. 4

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

, and No. 5

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

. Alabama beat No. 9

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

16-10 in the Kickoff Classic on August 27 and Miami won 34-14 at South Carolina on August 30, but no new poll was taken the following week. September 6: No. 1 Oklahoma hosted No. 4 UCLA and overwhelmed the Bruins 38-3. No. 2 Michigan had not begun its season. No. 3 Miami won 23-15 at

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

, No. 5 Alabama defeated Vanderbilt 42-10, and No. 6 Penn State beat Temple 45-15. The next AP Poll featured No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 Alabama, and No. 5 Penn State. September 13: No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 5 Penn State were idle. No. 2 Miami dominated Texas Tech 61-11, No. 3 Michigan won 24-23 at Notre Dame in Lou Holtz’s first game as the Fighting Irish head coach, and No. 4 Alabama beat Southern Mississippi 31-17. The top five remained the same in the next poll. September 20: No. 1 Oklahoma had its second consecutive blowout win, 63-0 over Minnesota. No. 2 Miami was idle. No. 3 Michigan beat Oregon State 31-12, but still slipped a few spots in the next poll. No. 4 Alabama won 21-7 at No. 13 Florida. No. 5 Penn State also fell to a lower ranking despite a win (26-14 at Boston College). No. 6

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

, which defeated Illinois 59-14, moved into the top five: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Michigan. September 27: In a highly anticipated matchup, No. 1 Oklahoma faced off against No. 2 Miami, the only team which had defeated them in 1985. The Sooners were no luckier this year than last, as Vinny Testaverde led the Hurricanes to a 28-16 victory. This was a major blow for the Sooners, who would finish the 1986 season ranked first in all four major defensive statistical categories – a feat not to be duplicated until

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

, by

– but remained stuck behind Miami in the polls for the rest of the year. No. 3 Alabama was idle. No. 4 Nebraska beat Oregon 48-14, No. 5 Michigan squeaked past No. 20

Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the sta ...

20-18, and No. 6 Penn State won 42-17 over East Carolina. The top five in the next poll was No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Michigan, and No. 5 Penn State.

October

October 4: No. 1 Miami shut out Northern Illinois 34-0, No. 2 Alabama beat Notre Dame 28-10, No. 3 Nebraska won 27-24 in a back-and-forth game at South Carolina, No. 4 Michigan defeated Wisconsin 34-17, and No. 5 Penn State beat Rutgers 31-6. The top five remained the same in the next poll. October 11: No. 1 Miami won 58-14 at West Virginia, No. 2 Alabama blanked Memphis 37-0, No. 3 Nebraska beat Oklahoma State 30-10, and No. 4 Michigan defeated Michigan State 27-6. No. 5 Penn State needed a late comeback to beat Cincinnati 23-17, and No. 6 Oklahoma, which bounced back with a 47-12 victory over Texas, moved ahead of the Nittany Lions in the next poll: No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Michigan, and No. 5 Oklahoma. October 18: No. 1 Miami won 45-13 at Cincinnati, No. 2 Alabama defeated Tennessee 56-28, and No. 3 Nebraska beat Missouri 48-17. A No. 1 vs No. 2 matchup the previous season between Iowa and Michigan had decided the race for the

1986 Rose Bowl The 1986 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 1986. It was the 72nd edition and was held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. The UCLA Bruins upset the Iowa Hawkeyes 45–28. UCLA tailback Eric Ball was named th ...

; in the 1986 rematch, the No. 4-ranked Wolverines got revenge on the No. 8-ranked Hawkeyes with a 20–17 win. No. 5 Oklahoma shut out Oklahoma State 19-0, and the top five remained the same in the next poll. October 25: No. 1 Miami was idle, while No. 6 Penn State defeated No. 2 Alabama 23-3 in Tuscaloosa. The Hurricanes and the Nittany Lions both played relatively weak schedules with the exceptions of powerhouses Oklahoma and Alabama, and their upset victories bolstered their national championship aspirations.Looney, Douglas S. – A Midseason Run For Respect. Penn State made believers out of 'Bama and gave two minor bowls major hopes for New Year's Day. Sports Illustrated, November 3, 1986.Reilly, Rick – It Only Hurts For A Little While. Just ask Cincinnati or any number of other college football have-nots who, week after week, are willing to serve as fodder for powerhouses like Miami and Penn State, most of whom have discovered that a prerequisite for a trip to the top of the polls—and into a major bowl game—is a cream-puff schedule. Sports Illustrated, November 24, 1986 No. 3 Nebraska fell 20-10 at Colorado. No. 4 Michigan won 38-14 at Indiana. No. 5 Oklahoma achieved their second consecutive shutout, 38-0 at Iowa State, and No. 7 Auburn beat No. 13 Mississippi State 35-6. The top five in the next poll were No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 Oklahoma, and No. 5 Auburn.

November

November 1: The top four teams all won easily. No. 1 Miami defeated No. 20 Florida State 41-23, No. 2 Penn State shut out West Virginia 19-0, No. 3 Michigan overwhelmed Illinois 69-13, and No. 4 Oklahoma crushed Kansas 64-3. However, No. 5 Auburn blew a 17-0 lead in an 18-17 loss at Florida. No. 6

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

matched up against No. 7 Arizona State, and the Sun Devils won 34-21 to take over first place in the Pac-10. They had already beaten both

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses ** South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

and UCLA in Los Angeles, the first

Pacific-10 conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Divisi ...

team to do so in the same year. The top five in the next poll were No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 Oklahoma, and No. 5 Arizona State. November 8: No. 1 Miami won 37-10 at Pittsburgh. No. 2 Penn State barely got past Maryland 17-15, with the Terrapins falling short on a last-minute two-point conversion attempt. The AP voters were more impressed by No. 3 Michigan’s 31-7 victory at Purdue, and the Wolverines moved up in the next poll. No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 5 Arizona State won in lopsided shutouts, 77-0 over Missouri and 49-0 over California. (This was the latest episode in a difficult year for Cal coach

Joe Kapp Joseph Robert Kapp (born March 19, 1938) is an American former football player, coach, and executive. He played college football as a quarterback at the University of California, Berkeley. Kapp played professionally in the Canadian Football Lea ...

, who had unzipped his pants in front of the Seattle media following an embarrassing 50–18 loss against Washington in October and would be fired after the season.) The Sun Devils’ victory allowed them to clinch the Pac-10 title and a Rose Bowl berth. The next poll featured No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Michigan, No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Oklahoma, and No. 5 Arizona State. November 15: No. 1 Miami beat Tulsa 23-10. Minnesota was a 25–point underdog in a road game against No. 2 Michigan; the Gophers had not defeated the Wolverines since 1977.Neff, Craig – Bo Tries On A Tie, Gets A Boot. Sports Illustrated, November 24, 1986 Nevertheless, Michigan trailed in the fourth quarter and scored a touchdown to tie the game at 17 with only two minutes to go. On the ensuing Minnesota possession, quarterback

Rickey Foggie Rickey Foggie (born July 15, 1966) is a former gridiron football quarterback. Foggie was the starting quarterback for the Minnesota Golden Gophers for four seasons, before going on to play professionally in the Canadian Football League and Arena ...

scrambled to put

Chip Lohmiller John McLeod "Chip" Lohmiller (born July 16, 1966) is a former professional American football placekicker in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins, New Orleans Saints, and St. Louis Rams. He played college football at the Unive ...

in field goal position; Lohmiller connected for a 20–17 Gophers victory. No. 3 Penn State had another close one, stopping Notre Dame 24-19 after the Irish had driven to the Lions’ 6-yard line with a minute left. No. 4 Oklahoma blanked Colorado 28-0; the Sooners had outscored their last five opponents 226-3. No. 5 Arizona State defeated Wichita State 52-6, and No. 6 Nebraska overwhelmed Kansas 70-0. The next poll featured No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Arizona State, and No. 5 Nebraska. November 22: No. 1 Miami was idle. No. 2 Penn State finished an undefeated regular season with a 34-14 victory over Pittsburgh. No. 3 Oklahoma and No. 5 Nebraska met in Lincoln to decide the Big 8 title and an

Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935, making it, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, the second-oldest bowl game in ...

berth. The Sooners entered the fourth quarter trailing by ten points, but came back to win 20-17 on a field goal with time running out. No. 4 Arizona State lost 34-17 at Arizona. No. 6 Michigan and No. 7 Ohio State, both undefeated in Big Ten play, met to determine who would be the Sun Devils’ Rose Bowl opponent. Quarterback

Jim Harbaugh James Joseph Harbaugh (; born December 23, 1963) is an American football coach and former quarterback, who is the current and 20th head football coach of the Michigan Wolverines. He played college football at Michigan from 1983 to 1986. He play ...

guaranteed a Michigan victory: "We don't care where we play the game. I hate to say it, but we could play it in the parking lot. We could play the game at 12 noon or midnight. We're going to be jacked up."Hersch, Hank – Short On Style, But Plenty Long On Substance. Sports Illustrated, December 1, 1986 This game also was decided by a late field goal, but this time it was an Ohio State miss which gave Michigan a 26-24 victory. No. 8 LSU, who had already clinched the SEC title and a

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed only ...

berth, defeated Notre Dame 21-19. The next poll featured No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Michigan, and No. 5 LSU. November 27-29: No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Oklahoma, and No. 4 Michigan had finished their seasons. No. 1 Miami finished undefeated with a 36-10 win over East Carolina, and No. 5 LSU completed their schedule by defeating Tulane 37-17. The last remaining major conference race was also decided this week, as No. 10

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

clinched the SWC title and a Cotton Bowl berth with a 16-3 victory at Texas. The top five remained the same in the final poll of the regular season.

No. 1 and No. 2 Progress

Notable rivalry games

* LSU 37, Tulane 17 *

24, Notre Dame 23 * Notre Dame 38,

37 *

20,

17 *

45,

25 *

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

21,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

14 Arkansas' victory over Texas was the Razorbacks' first win in

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

since

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo ...

Bowl games

With Arizona State having clinched the Rose Bowl berth on November 8, and the

and

Citrus Bowl The Citrus Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The bowl is operated by Florida Citrus Sports, a non-profit group that also organizes the Cheez-It Bowl and Florida Classic. The gam ...

scrambling to bid for the No. 1 Miami (Florida) vs. No. 2 Penn State Game, the Cotton Bowl struck an agreement to take the loser of the Michigan-Ohio State game. All the bowl games attempted to line up participants before the official bids were extended on November 22. The Sugar Bowl agreed to take the loser of the Oklahoma-Nebraska game to match the SEC winner, and the Orange Bowl agreed to take the second place SWC team to match the Big 8 winner. The Citrus Bowl, which moved to January 1, got a second place SEC team in Auburn, and, what they hoped would be a good matchup, in 7–2 USC. The Trojans would lose to UCLA and Notre Dame after they were invited. * Rose Bowl: No. 7 Arizona State 22, No. 4

15 *

: No. 6

30, No. 5 LSU 15 * Cotton Bowl: No. 11

28, No. 8

12 *

: No. 3

42, No. 9

8 *

: No. 2 Penn State 14, No. 1 Miami (FL) 10 Other bowls: *

Florida Citrus Bowl Camping World Stadium is a stadium in Orlando, Florida, located in the West Lakes neighborhood of Downtown Orlando, west of new sports and entertainment facilities including the Amway Center, the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, an ...

: No. 10 Auburn 16,

7 *

Hall of Fame Bowl The ReliaQuest Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, usually on New Year's Day. The event has been formerly called the Hall of Fame Bowl from 1986 to 1995 and the Outback Bowl from 1996 to ...

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classified ...

27, No. 17

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

24 *

Gator Bowl The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game held in Jacksonville, Florida, operated by Gator Bowl Sports. It has been held continuously since 1946, making it the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised natio ...

: Clemson 27, No. 20

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. S ...

21 *

Sun Bowl The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose ...

: No. 13

28, No. 12

6 *

Holiday Bowl The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football bowl game that has been played in San Diego since 1978. San Diego County Credit Union has been the game's title sponsor since 2017, and the bowl has ...

: No. 19

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

39,

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

38 *

Freedom Bowl The Freedom Bowl was an annual post-season college football bowl game played at Anaheim Stadium in Anaheim, California, from 1984 to 1994. The bowl frequently invited a team from the Western Athletic Conference to compete against an at-large o ...

: No. 15

31, BYU 10 *

Peach Bowl The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was officially ...

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...

25, No. 18 NC State 24 *

All-American Bowl The All-American Bowl was an annual postseason college football bowl game played at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama from 1977 to 1990. The game was known as the Hall of Fame Classic from 1977 to 1985. In 1986, the National Football Foundatio ...

27,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

13 *

Liberty Bowl The Liberty Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in late December or early January since 1959. For its first five years, it was played at Philadelphia Municipal Stadium in Philadelphia before being held at Atlantic Cit ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

21,

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

14 *

Aloha Bowl The Aloha Bowl was a National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Bowl Subdivision (then known as Division I-A) college football bowl game played in Honolulu, Hawaii at Aloha Stadium. History The Aloha Bowl was established in 1982 by Ma ...

: No. 16

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

30,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...

21 *

Independence Bowl The Independence Bowl is a post-season National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)-sanctioned Division I college football bowl game that is played annually each December at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Independence Bowl ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

20,

Texas Tech Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

17 *

California Bowl The California Bowl (later the California Raisin Bowl) was a post-season college football bowl game played annually at Bulldog Stadium in Fresno, California, from 1981 to 1991. The game featured the champions of the Big West Conference (known ...

: San Jose State 37, Miami (Ohio) 7 *

Bluebonnet Bowl The Bluebonnet Bowl was an annual college football bowl game played in Houston, Texas. A civic group was appointed by the Houston Chamber of Commerce Athletics Committee in 1959 to organize the bowl game. It was held at Rice Stadium from 19 ...

: No. 14 Baylor 21,

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

Polls

Final AP Poll

# Penn State # Miami (FL) # Oklahoma # Arizona State # Nebraska # Auburn # Ohio State # Michigan # Alabama # LSU # Arizona # Baylor # Texas A&M # UCLA # Arkansas # Iowa # Clemson # Washington # Boston College # Virginia Tech

Final Coaches Poll

# Penn State # Miami (FL) # Oklahoma # Nebraska # Arizona St. # Ohio St. # Michigan # Auburn # Alabama # Arizona # LSU # Texas A&M # Baylor # UCLA # Iowa # Arkansas # Washington # Boston College # Clemson # Florida St.

Awards

Heisman Trophy

#Winner: Vinny Testaverde, Miami (Fl), Sr. QB #Paul Palmer, Temple, Sr. TB #Jim Harbaugh, Michigan, Sr. QB #Brian Bosworth, Oklahoma, Sr. LB #Gordie Lockbaum, Holy Cross, Jr. TB

Other major awards

*Maxwell (Player):Vinny Testaverde, Miami (Fl) *Camp (Back): Vinny Testaverde, Miami (Fl) *O'Brein Award (QB): Vinny Testaverde, Miami (Fl) *Rockne (Lineman): N/A *Lombardi (Defensive Front Seven): Cornelius Bennett, Alabama *Butkus (Linebacker): Brian Bosworth, Oklahoma *Outland (Interior): Jason Buck, BYU *Coach of the Year: Joe Paterno, Penn State

References

{{NCAA football season navbox