The Top 25 teams in The Associated Press college football poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Sept. 20, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote, and previous ranking:
| Record | Pts | Pv | |
| 1. Florida St. (34) | 3-0 | 1,439 | 1 |
| 2. Oregon (11) | 4-0 | 1,398 | 2 |
| 3. Alabama (7) | 4-0 | 1,378 | 3 |
| 4. Oklahoma (4) | 4-0 | 1,344 | 4 |
| 5. Auburn | 3-0 | 1,268 | 5 |
| 6. Texas A&M (4) | 4-0 | 1,232 | 6 |
| 7. Baylor | 3-0 | 1,143 | 7 |
| 8. Notre Dame | 3-0 | 967 | 9 |
| 9. Michigan St. | 2-1 | 905 | 11 |
| 10. Mississippi | 3-0 | 889 | 10 |
| 11. UCLA | 3-0 | 806 | 12 |
| 12. Georgia | 2-1 | 789 | 13 |
| 13. South Carolina | 3-1 | 764 | 14 |
| 14. Mississippi St. | 4-0 | 706 | NR |
| 15. Arizona St. | 3-0 | 702 | 15 |
| 16. Stanford | 2-1 | 564 | 16 |
| 17. LSU | 3-1 | 541 | 8 |
| 18. Southern Cal | 2-1 | 459 | 17 |
| 19. Wisconsin | 2-1 | 451 | 19 |
| 20. BYU | 4-0 | 376 | 21 |
| 21. Nebraska | 4-0 | 296 | 24 |
| 22. Ohio St. | 2-1 | 196 | 23 |
| 23. East Carolina | 3-1 | 180 | NR |
| 24. Oklahoma St. | 2-1 | 132 | 25 |
| 25. Kansas St. | 2-1 | 131 | 20 |
Others receiving votes: Duke 86, Penn St. 81, Clemson 48, TCU 35, Marshall 33, Utah 31, Washington 30, Georgia Tech 22, Boston College 19, West Virginia 15 2-2, Cincinnati 11, Arizona 9, Arkansas 9, Missouri 5, Oregon St. 5, N. Dakota St. 3, Indiana 1, Pittsburgh 1.