| Season: | 1966 |
| Preseason Number 1: | Alabama |
| Champions: | Notre Dame |
Two human polls comprised the 1966 NCAA University Division football rankings. Unlike most sports, college football's governing body, the NCAA, does not bestow a national championship, instead that title is bestowed by one or more different polling agencies. There are two main weekly polls that begin in the preseason—the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll.
| Increase in ranking | |||
| Decrease in ranking | |||
| Not ranked previous week | |||
| National champion | |||
| Win–loss record | |||
| Number of first place votes | |||
| Tied with team above or below also with this symbol |
The final AP Poll was released in early December, at the end of the 1966 regular season.[1] In the previous season, the final poll was released in January for the first time, after the bowl games, but not in 1966 or 1967.
The AP Poll ranked only the top ten teams from 1962 through 1967.
The final UPI Coaches Poll was released prior to the bowl games, in late November.[2] [3]
Notre Dame received twenty of the 35 first-place votes; Michigan State received ten, Alabama four, and UCLA one.[4]
| Ranking | Team | Conference | Bowl |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Notre Dame | Independent | none |
| 2 | Michigan State | Big Ten | |
| 3 | Alabama | SEC | Won Sugar, 34–7 |
| 4 | Georgia | SEC | Won Cotton, 24–9 |
| 5 | UCLA | AAWU (Pac-8) | none |
| 6 | Purdue | Big Ten | Won Rose, 14–13 |
| 7 | Nebraska | Big Eight | Lost Sugar, 7–34 |
| 8 | Georgia Tech | Independent | Lost Orange, 12–27 |
| 9 | SMU | Southwest | Lost Cotton, 9–24 |
| 10 | Miami (FL) | Independent | Won Liberty, 14–7 |
| 11 | Florida | SEC | Won Orange, 27–12 |
| 12 | Mississippi | SEC | Lost Bluebonnet, 0–19 |
| 13 | Arkansas | Southwest | none |
| 14 | Tennessee | SEC | Won Gator, 18–12 |
| 15 | Wyoming | WAC | Won Sun, 28–20 |
| 16 | Syracuse | Independent | Lost Gator, 12–18 |
| 17 | Houston | Independent | none |
| 18 | USC | AAWU (Pac-8) | Lost Rose, 13–14 |
| 19 | Oregon State | AAWU (Pac-8) | none |
| 20 | Virginia Tech | Independent | Lost Liberty, 7–14 |