Two human polls comprised the

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

(NCAA)

Division I-A The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). A ...

football rankings. Unlike most sports, college football's governing body, the NCAA, does not bestow a

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

, 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 The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broad ...

and the

Coaches Poll The Coaches Poll is a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football, Division I college basketball, and Division I college baseball teams. The football version of the poll has been known officiall ...

Legend

AP Poll

Coaches Poll

In the final Coaches Poll of the 1997 season, Nebraska leapfrogged Michigan to secure a share of the national championship, making it the 3rd split championship of the 1990s. Eight coaches split their first-place votes, with a final tally of 32 first-place votes for Nebraska and 30 for Michigan. The final vote count was Nebraska 1,520, Michigan 1,516.USA Today ESPN TOP 25 COACHES' POLL. (1998, Jan 05). ''USA Today.'' Retrieved via ProQuest.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1997 NCAA Division I-A Football Rankings * NCAA Division I FBS football rankings