| Rank | Team | Record | Next Opponent | Prior | |
| 1 |  | Alabama | 7-0, 4-0 | Texas A&M | 1 |
| 2 |  | Ohio State | 6-0, 3-0 | at Penn State | 2 |
| 3 |  | Clemson | 7-0, 4-0 | bye | 3 |
| 4 |
| Michigan | 6-0, 3-0 | Illinois | 4 |
| 5 |  | Washington | 6-0, 3-0 | Oregon State | 5 |
| 6 |  | Texas A&M | 6-0, 4-0 | at Alabama | 6 |
| 7 |  | Louisville | 5-1, 3-1 | North Carolina State | 7 |
| 8 |  | Nebraska | 6-0, 3-0 | Purdue | 8 |
| 9 |  | Baylor | 6-0, 3-0 | bye | 10 |
| 10 |  | Houston | 6-1, 3-1 | at SMU | 13 |
| 11 |  | Florida | 5-1, 3-1 | bye | 14 |
| 12 |  | Tennessee | 5-2, 2-2 | bye | 11 |
| 13 |  | Wisconsin | 4-2, 1-2 | at Iowa | 9 |
| 14 |  | Florida State | 5-2, 2-2 | bye | 15 |
| 15 |  | Oklahoma | 4-2, 3-0 | at Texas Tech | 17 |
| 16 |  | Boise State | 6-0, 3-0 | BYU | 18 |
| 17 |  | Utah | 6-1, 3-1 | at UCLA | 20 |
| 18 |  | West Virginia | 5-0, 2-0 | TCU | 23 |
| 19 |  | Arkansas | 5-2, 1-2 | at Auburn | NR |
| 20 |  | Western Michigan | 7-0, 3-0 | Eastern Michigan | 24 |
| 21 |  | LSU | 4-2, 2-1 | Mississippi | 19 |
| 22 |  | Stanford | 4-2, 2-2 | Colorado | 22 |
| 23 |  | North Carolina | 5-2, 3-1 | at Virginia | NR |
| 24 |  | Mississippi | 3-3, 1-2 | at LSU | 12 |
| 25 |  | Miami (FL) | 4-2, 1-2 | at Virginia Tech | 16 |
