| Season: | 1940 |
| Number Of Bowls: | 5 |
| All Star Games: | Blue–Gray Football Classic East–West Shrine Game |
| Bowl Start: | January 1, 1941 |
| Champions: | Minnesota Golden Gophers (AP) Boston College Eagles (Various) Tennessee Volunteers (Various) Stanford Indians (Helms, Poling System) |
| Conference1: | Independent |
| Conference1 Teams: | 3 |
| Conference1 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference1 Losses: | 2 |
| Conference1 Ties: | 0 |
| Conference1 Ap Poll: | 7 |
| Conference2: | SEC |
| Conference2 Teams: | 2 |
| Conference2 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference2 Losses: | 1 |
| Conference2 Ties: | 0 |
| Conference2 Ap Poll: | 2 |
| Conference3: | Big Four |
| Conference3 Teams: | 1 |
| Conference3 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference3 Losses: | 0 |
| Conference3 Ties: | 0 |
| Conference3 Ap Poll: | 0 |
| Conference4: | PCC |
| Conference4 Teams: | 1 |
| Conference4 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference4 Losses: | 0 |
| Conference4 Ties: | 0 |
| Conference4 Ap Poll: | 2 |
| Conference5: | SWC |
| Conference5 Teams: | 1 |
| Conference5 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference5 Losses: | 0 |
| Conference5 Ties: | 0 |
| Conference5 Ap Poll: | 2 |
| Conference6: | Big Six |
| Conference6 Teams: | 1 |
| Conference6 Wins: | 0 |
| Conference6 Losses: | 1 |
| Conference6 Ties: | 0 |
| Conference6 Ap Poll: | 1 |
| Conference7: | Border |
| Conference7 Teams: | 1 |
| Conference7 Wins: | 0 |
| Conference7 Losses: | 1 |
| Conference7 Ties: | 0 |
| Conference7 Ap Poll: | 0 |
| Conference8: | Big Ten |
| Conference8 Teams: | 0 |
| Conference8 Ap Poll: | 3 |
| Conference9: | Middle Three |
| Conference9 Teams: | 0 |
| Conference9 Ap Poll: | 1 |
| Conference10: | Southern |
| Conference10 Teams: | 0 |
| Conference10 Ap Poll: | 1 |
The 1940–41 NCAA football bowl games were the final games of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) 1940 college football season and featured five bowl games, each of which had been held the previous season. All five bowls were played on January 1, 1941. The national championship, according to recognized selectors, was split by Minnesota, Boston College, Tennessee, and Stanford.
See also: 1940 NCAA football rankings.
| Date | Game | Site | Teams | Affiliations | Results | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style=white-space:nowrap rowspan=5 | Jan. 1 | Rose Bowl | Rose Bowl Pasadena, California |
| PCC Big 6 | Stanford 21 Nebraska 13 |
| Sugar Bowl | Tulane Stadium New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Independent SEC | Boston College 19 Tennessee 13 | ||
| Orange Bowl | Burdine Stadium Miami, Florida |
| SEC Independent | Mississippi State 14 Georgetown 7 | ||
| Sun Bowl | Kidd Field El Paso, Texas | Western Reserve Red Cats (7–1) Arizona State Bulldogs (7–1–2) | Big Four Border | Western Reserve 26 Arizona State 13 | ||
| Cotton Bowl Classic | Cotton Bowl Dallas, Texas |
| SWC Independent | Texas A&M 13 Fordham 12 |
| Qtr. | Team | Scoring play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NEB | Francis 2 yard rush, Francis kick good | NEB 7–0 | |
| STAN | Gallarneau 10 yard rush, Albert kick good | TIED 7–7 | ||
| 2 | NEB | Zikmund 33 yard pass from Rohrig, kick blocked | NEB 13–7 | |
| STAN | Gallarneau 40 yard pass from Albert, Albert kick good | STAN 14–13 | ||
| 3 | STAN | Kmetovic 40 yard punt return, Albert kick good | STAN 21–13 | |
| Source: | ||||
| Qtr. | Team | Scoring play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TENN | Thompson 4 yard rush, Foxx kick good | TENN 7–0 | |
| 3 | BC | Connally 13 yard rush, Maznicki kick good | TIED 7–7 | |
| TENN | Warren 2 yard rush, kick failed | TENN 13–7 | ||
| BC | Holovak 1 yard rush, kick failed | TIED 13–13 | ||
| 4 | BC | O'Rourke 24 yard rush, kick failed | BC 19–13 | |
| Source: | ||||
| Qtr. | Team | Scoring play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MSST | Tripson blocked punt recovery, Dees kick good | MSST 7–0 | |
| 2 | MSST | Jefferson 2 yard rush, Bruce kick good | MSST 14–0 | |
| 3 | GTWN | Castiglia 2 yard rush, Lio kick good | MSST 14–7 | |
| Source: | ||||
| Qtr. | Team | Scoring play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WR | Belichick 1 yard rush, Belichick kick good | WR 7–0 | |
| 2 | ASU | Pitts 14 yard pass from Hernandez, kick failed | WR 7–6 | |
| ASU | Henshaw 94 yard rush, Hernandez kick good | ASU 13–7 | ||
| 3 | WR | Waggle 3 yard punt block return, kick failed | TIED 13–13 | |
| 4 | WR | Ries 13 yard rush, Skoczen kick good | WR 20–13 | |
| WR | Ries 3 yard rush, kick failed | WR 26–13 | ||
| Source: | ||||
| Qtr. | Team | Scoring play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | FORD | Filipowicz 2 yard rush, kick blocked | FORD 6–0 | |
| 3 | A&M | Smith 62 yard pass from Pugh, kick failed | TIED 6–6 | |
| A&M | Kimbrough 1 yard rush, Pugh kick good | A&M 13–6 | ||
| 4 | FORD | Blumenstock 15 yard rush, kick blocked | A&M 13–12 | |
| Source: | ||||