| Season: | 1986 |
| Number Of Bowls: | 18 |
| Bowl Start: | December 13, 1986 |
| Bowl End: | January 2, 1987 |
| Championship Bowl: | 1987 Fiesta Bowl |
| Championship Location: | Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona |
| Champions: | Penn State Nittany Lions |
| Conference1: | SEC |
| Conference1 Teams: | 6 |
| Conference1 Wins: | 4 |
| Conference1 Losses: | 2 |
| Conference1 Ap Poll: | 3 |
| Conference2: | Pac-10 |
| Conference2 Teams: | 6 |
| Conference2 Wins: | 3 |
| Conference2 Losses: | 3 |
| Conference2 Ap Poll: | 4 |
| Conference3: | Independents |
| Conference3 Teams: | 5 |
| Conference3 Wins: | 4 |
| Conference3 Losses: | 1 |
| Conference3 Ap Poll: | 4 |
| Conference4: | Big Ten |
| Conference4 Teams: | 5 |
| Conference4 Wins: | 2 |
| Conference4 Losses: | 3 |
| Conference4 Ap Poll: | 3 |
| Conference5: | SWC |
| Conference5 Teams: | 4 |
| Conference5 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference5 Losses: | 3 |
| Conference5 Ap Poll: | 3 |
| Conference6: | Big Eight |
| Conference6 Teams: | 3 |
| Conference6 Wins: | 2 |
| Conference6 Losses: | 1 |
| Conference6 Ap Poll: | 2 |
| Conference7: | ACC |
| Conference7 Teams: | 3 |
| Conference7 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference7 Losses: | 2 |
| Conference7 Ap Poll: | 1 |
| Conference8: | WAC |
| Conference8 Teams: | 2 |
| Conference8 Wins: | 0 |
| Conference8 Losses: | 2 |
| Conference8 Ap Poll: | 0 |
| Conference9: | PCAA |
| Conference9 Teams: | 1 |
| Conference9 Wins: | 1 |
| Conference9 Losses: | 0 |
| Conference9 Ap Poll: | 0 |
| Conference10: | MAC |
| Conference10 Teams: | 1 |
| Conference10 Wins: | 0 |
| Conference10 Losses: | 1 |
| Conference10 Ap Poll: | 0 |
The 1986–87 NCAA football bowl games were a series of post-season games played in December 1986 and January 1987 to end the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. A total of 18 team-competitive games,[1] and two all-star games, were played. The post-season began with the California Bowl on December 13, 1986, and concluded on January 17, 1987, with the season-ending Senior Bowl.