The 1957 college football season was the 89th season of

intercollegiate football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...

in the United States. It concluded with two teams having claim to the major college national championship: *

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

compiled a 10–0 record and was ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press (AP) writers poll and No. 2 in the final United Press International (UPI) coaches poll. Auburn has also been recognized as national champion by

Billingsley Report The Billingsley Report is a college football rating system developed in the late 1960s to determine a national champion. Billingsley has actively rated college football teams on a current basis since 1970. Beginning in 1999, Billingsley's ratings ...

College Football Researchers Association The College Football Researchers Association (CFRA) was founded in 1982 by Anthony Cusher of Reeder, North Dakota, and Robert Kirlin of Spokane, Washington. The CFRA took a vote of its members from 1982 to 1992 to select an annual college football n ...

Helms Athletic Foundation The Helms Athletic Foundation, founded in 1936, was a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to the promotion of athletics and sportsmanship. Paul H. Helms was the organization's founder and benefactor, funding the foundation via his ownership ...

National Championship Foundation The National Championship Foundation (NCF) was established by Mike Riter of Hudson, New York. The NCF retroactively selected college football national champions for each year from 1869 to 1979, and its selections are among the historic national ch ...

Poling System The Poling System was a mathematical rating system used to select college football national championship teams on a current basis from 1935 to 1984. Its selections were published in the ''Football Review Supplement'' and several newspapers.

Sagarin Ratings Jeff Sagarin is an American sports statistician known for his development of a method for ranking and rating sports teams in a variety of sports. His ratings have been a regular feature in the ''USA Today'' sports section since 1985, have been use ...

, and

Williamson System The Williamson System was a mathematical system used to rank college football teams. The system was created by Paul B. Williamson, a geologist and member of the Sugar Bowl committee. The NCAA college football records book includes the Williamson Sy ...

. Auburn was ineligible for a bowl game, however, having been placed on probation by the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

, after having paid two high school players $500 apiece. *

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

compiled a 8–1 regular season record and was ranked No. 1 in the final UPI coaches poll. They would go on to defeat

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

in the Rose Bowl, and after the bowls were given the

Grantland Rice Award The Grantland Rice Trophy was an annual award presented in the United States from 1954 to 2013 to the college football team recognized by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) as the National Champions. Named for the legendary sportsw ...

representative of the national championship by the

Football Writers Association of America The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media out ...

. Other notable teams from the 1957 season include:

Florida A&M Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a public historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida. Founded in 1887, It is the third largest historically black university in the U ...

(9–0, black college national champion); Pittsburg State (11–0, NAIA national champion);

Arizona State Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

(10–0, top-ranked offense outscored opponents, 397 to 66); and Middle Tennesse (10–0,

Ohio Valley The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illinoi ...

champion).

John David Crow John David Crow Sr. (July 8, 1935 – June 17, 2015) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1957 as a halfback for the Texas A&M Aggies. After college, he played professional f ...

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

won the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

, and

Bob Reifsnyder Robert Harland Reifsnyder (born June 18, 1937) is a former American football player. An All-American at the United States Naval Academy, he won the Maxwell Award in 1957. He went on to play professionally for the American Football League (AFL)'s ...

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

won the

Maxwell Award The Maxwell Award is presented annually to the college football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best all ...

. The statistical leaders among the major college teams included

Washington State Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...

quarterback

Bob Newman Bob Newman (born c. 1938) was an American football player. He played college football for Washington State Cougars football team from 1956 to 1958. He ranked second behind John Brodie among NCAA major college players with 1,240 passing yards in ...

with 1,444 yards of

total offense Total offense (or total offence) is a gridiron football statistic representing the total number of yards rushing and yards passing by a team or player. Total offense differs from yards from scrimmage, which gives credit for passing yardage to the ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

quarterback

Lee Grosscup {{Infobox NFL biography , name = Lee Grosscup , image = Lee Grosscup 1958.jpeg , alt = , caption = Grosscup, circa 1958 , birth_date = {{Birth date, 1936, 12, 27, mf=y , birth_place = Santa Monica, California , death_date = {{Death date an ...

with 1,398 passing yards, and Arizona State halfback

Leon Burton Walter Leon Burton (March 13, 1935 – October 7, 2022) was an American professional football player who played 14 games for the New York Titans in one season of the American Football League (AFL) in 1960. He earlier played college footbal ...

with 1,126 rushing yards and 96 points scored.

Conference and program changes

Conference changes

*One conference began play in 1957: **''

Gulf Coast Athletic Conference The Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) is a college athletic conference made up entirely of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) that's affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member inst ...

'' – active through the 1963 season *One conference played its final season in 1957: **''

Central Church College Conference The Central Church College Conference (CCCC) was an intercollegiate athletic football conference that existed from 1951 and 1957. Its membership was centered on the states of Missouri and Nebraska.Sooners Sooners is the name given to settlers who entered the Unassigned Lands in what is now the state of Oklahoma before the official start of the Land Rush of 1889. The Unassigned Lands were a part of Indian Territory that, after a lobbying campaign, ...

of the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

—who had won 40 consecutive games dating back to

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...

—were the first place choice for 127 of 174 writers casting votes, followed by

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, and

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. As the regular season progressed, a new poll would be issued on the Monday following the weekend's games. September 20 -

Abner Haynes Abner Haynes (born September 19, 1937) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the American Football League (AFL). Early years and integration of major college football in Texas Born in Denton, Texas, Hayn ...

and Leon King suited up for

North Texas State College The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal School," ...

against

Texas Western The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stud ...

Kidd Field Kidd Field is an athletic facility used primarily by the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) in El Paso, Texas. Constructed for its then-primary use as a football field in 1938, it was the site of the Sun Bowl until 1963 when Sun Bowl Stadium op ...

in El Paso, marking the first time a major college football team based in Texas fielded African-American players. King scored a 33 yard touchdown, while Haynes had a long touchdown run called back "despite never stepping out of bounds and the whistle not blowing until he crossed the goal line." Texas Western escaped with a 14–13 win. September 20–21 - The

U.S. Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Unit ...

, founded two years earlier played its first major college schedule in 1957. The

Falcons Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene. Adult falcons ...

made their debut at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

on Friday night and lost 47–0. They would finish their first season 3–6–1, but were undefeated the following year. On Saturday, No. 1 Oklahoma won at No. 8

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

26–0, breaking the all-time record for consecutive wins. No. 2 Texas A&M beat

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

21–13 in a game at

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

. No. 3 Michigan State, No. 4 Minnesota, and No. 5 Tennessee had not yet begun their seasons. No. 11

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

beat

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

13–0 and rose to third, while No. 12

won 46–6 at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

and rose to fifth. The first AP poll was No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Texas A&M, No. 3 Georgia Tech, No. 4 Michigan State, and No. 5 Navy. September 28 - No. 1 Oklahoma was idle. No. 2 Texas A&M won at

Texas Tech Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

21–0 and No. 3 Georgia Tech played to a scoreless tie with No. 15 SMU. No. 4 Michigan State beat

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

54–0. No. 5 Navy beat visiting William & Mary 33–6. No. 6 Minnesota, which beat

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

46–7, and No. 7

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

, which had beaten Virginia 40–0, rose into the top five. The next poll was No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Michigan State, No. 3 Minnesota, No. 4 Duke, and No. 5 Texas A&M.

October

October 5 - No. 1 Oklahoma beat

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

40–14. No. 2 Michigan State won at

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

19–0. No. 3 Minnesota beat visiting

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

21–17, No. 4 Duke beat Maryland 14–0, and No. 5 Texas A&M won at

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

28–0. The next poll was No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Michigan State, No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 4 Minnesota, and No. 5 Duke. October 12 - A crowd of 75,504 watched in Dallas as No. 1 Oklahoma had a difficult time with unranked

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

; the Longhorns picked off four passes and the score was 7–7 at the half before the Sooners preserved their winning streak 21–7 in a game that wasn't pretty. At the same time, No. 2 Michigan State won 35–6 at No. 6 Michigan, leading the AP voters to re-evaluate. No. 3 Texas A&M won 28–6 over

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

. No. 4 Minnesota won 41–6 at Northwestern. No. 5 Duke narrowly beat No. 15

Rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

in Houston, 7–6. The Spartans took over the top spot in the next poll: No. 1 Michigan State, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 4 Minnesota, and No. 5 Duke. October 19 - No. 1 Michigan State lost 20–13 to Purdue and fell out of the top five, while No. 2 Oklahoma beat

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

47–0 and reclaimed the top spot. No. 3 Texas A&M won 7–0 at TCU and No. 4 Minnesota lost at

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

34–14. No. 5 Duke beat Wake Forest 34–7, and No. 6

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

beat No. 13

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

21–7, while No. 9 Auburn beat Georgia Tech 3–0 in Atlanta and rose to fifth place in the polls. The next poll: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Texas A&M, No. 3 Iowa, No. 4 Duke, and No. 5 Auburn. October 26 - No. 1 Oklahoma edged

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

14–13, and lost the top spot again, despite being 5–0. No. 2 Texas A&M beat Baylor 14–0 and replaced the Sooners in the next poll. No. 3 Iowa won 6–0 at Northwestern and rose to third. No. 4 Duke went to neighboring Raleigh to play No. 11 North Carolina State and ended with a 14–14 tie. No. 5 Auburn won at Houston 48–7. No. 7 Notre Dame beat Pittsburgh 13–7 and rose to fifth. The next poll: No. 1 Texas A&M, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Iowa, No. 4 Auburn, and No. 5 Notre Dame.

November

November 2 - No. 1 Texas A&M got past No. 11

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

7–6 in Fayetteville, and No. 2 Oklahoma won at

Kansas State Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public instit ...

13–0. No. 3 Iowa played No. 12

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

to a 21–21 tie, and No. 4 Auburn beat No. 19

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

13–0. No. 5 Notre Dame lost 20–6 to visiting No. 16 Navy, and No. 6 Michigan State won 21–7 at Wisconsin to rise into the top five. The next poll: No. 1 Texas A&M, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Auburn, No. 4 Michigan State, and No. 5 Iowa. November 9 - No. 1 Texas A&M beat SMU 19–6 and No. 2 Oklahoma won at Missouri 39–14. No. 3 Auburn beat No. 17

Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univers ...

15–7 in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, No. 4 Michigan State beat No. 15 Notre Dame 34–6, and No. 5 Iowa beat Minnesota 44–20. The poll remained unchanged. November 16 - No. 1 Texas A&M lost 7–6 to No. 20 Rice in Houston. No. 2 Oklahoma had won a record 47 consecutive games when they hosted Notre Dame. The Irish, 4–2 and on a losing streak, were an 18–point underdog coming into Norman. The Sooners, who had scored in 123 consecutive games dating back to 1945, were unable to reach the end zone, but had held off the Irish on two goal line stands. In the final minutes, Notre Dame was on the 3–yard line on fourth down, when

Dick Lynch Richard Dennis Lynch (April 29, 1936 – September 24, 2008) was an American football defensive back in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and the New York Giants. He was a one-time Pro Bowler in 1963, when he led the NFL ...

"crossed up the Sooners" and ran around right end for a touchdown. Oklahoma's desperate passing drive at game's end was stopped by a Notre Dame interception, and the crowd of 62,000 was stunned into silence... and then stood up and applauded for both the Sooners and the Irish. Oklahoma's previous defeat, more than four years earlier, had been at the hands of Notre Dame as well. Final score: Notre Dame 7, Oklahoma 0. No. 3 Auburn beat Georgia 6–0 at

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it ...

while No. 4 Michigan State beat Minnesota 42–13. No. 5 Iowa lost 17–13 at No. 6 Ohio State; the 7–1 Buckeyes rose to third, while the 6–1–1 Hawkeyes fell to eighth. No. 8

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

, which beat No. 7

14–7 in Memphis, rose to fifth. The next poll: No. 1 Michigan State, No. 2 Auburn, No. 3 Ohio State, No. 4 Texas A&M, and No. 5 Mississippi. November 23 - No. 1 Michigan State closed its season with a 27–0 win over Kansas State, but fell to third. No. 2 Auburn won at

Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...

29–7. As the only unbeaten (9–0) school among the majors, Auburn was voted No. 1 in the AP poll. No. 3 Ohio State wrapped up its season with a win 31–14 at No. 19 Michigan and was first in the UPI poll. No. 4 Texas A&M and No. 5 Mississippi were idle, while No. 6 Oklahoma won 53–6 at Nebraska and returned to the top five. The poll: No. 1 Auburn, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 4 Texas A&M, and No. 5 Oklahoma. November 28–30 -

Thanksgiving Day Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden a ...

saw

Bear Bryant Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of ...

's No. 4 Texas A&M team lose 9–7 to Texas. On Saturday, No. 1 Auburn shut out rival

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

40–0 at their annual meeting in Birmingham to close its season 10–0, while the Crimson Tide finished at 2–7–1. Bryant, who had transformed the Aggies from a 1–9 team in

to a contender (Texas A&M was undefeated in 1956, and their two losses in 1957 were by a total of three points), would accept the job as head coach at his alma mater Alabama at season's end. No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Michigan State were both 8–1 in the regular season, but Ohio State was 7–0 in

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

play, compared to the 5–1 Spartans, and got the Rose Bowl bid against unranked Oregon. No. 5 Oklahoma beat Oklahoma State 53–6 and prepared for the

Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935, making it, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, the second-oldest bowl game in th ...

. No. 8 Navy, which won the Army-Navy game 14–0 in Philadelphia, finished with an 8–1–1 record, a bid to meet SWC champion Rice in the Cotton Bowl, and a fifth-place finish in the final poll. The services were split as to the national champion. The AP Trophy went to Auburn, the choice of a majority of writers for No. 1, and the only major college program to finish unbeaten (Arizona State, then a lesser power, also finished 10–0). Auburn, however, was on probation and was ineligible for a bowl (conference runner-up Mississippi received the SEC's automatic slot in the

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...

), and the UPI coaches poll awarded No. 1 to the Ohio State Buckeyes (8–1). Both Auburn and Ohio State are recognized in the NCAA Football Guidebook as unofficial national champions for 1957. The final AP poll was: No. 1 Auburn, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 4 Oklahoma, and No. 5 Navy, while the UPI poll was No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Auburn, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 4 Oklahoma, and No. 5 Iowa.

Conference standings

Major conference standings

Minor conference standings

NAIA standings

Bowl games

Major bowls

''Wednesday, January 1, 1958''

Other bowls

Small college

NAIA postseason

The 1957 NAIA football season was the second season of

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Final polls

Final polls were released in the first week of December.

Undefeated teams

Thirteen college football teams finished the 1957 season with unbeaten and untied records:

Heisman Trophy voting

''The

is given to the year's most outstanding player'' Source:

Statistical leaders

Individual

Total offense

The following players were the individual leaders in

during the 1957 season:
Major college Small college

Passing

The following players were the individual leaders in pass completions during the 1957 season:
Major college
Small college

Rushing

The following players were the individual leaders in rushing yards during the 1957 season:
Major college Small college

Receiving

The following players were the individual leaders in receptions during the 1957 season:
Major college
Small college

Scoring

The following players were the individual leaders in scoring during the 1957 season:
Major college
Small college

Team

Total offense

The following teams were the leaders in total offense during the 1957 season:
Major college Small college

Rushing offense

The following teams were the leaders in rushing offense during the 1957 season:
Major college Small college

Passing offense

The following teams were the leaders in passing offense during the 1957 season:
Major college Small college

Total defense

The following teams were the leaders in total defense during the 1957 season:
Major college
Small college

Rushing defense

The following teams were the leaders in rushing defense during the 1957 season:
Major college Small college

Passing defense

The following teams were the leaders in passing defense during the 1957 season:
Major college Small college

References

{{NCAA football season navbox

Conference and program changes

Conference changes

October

November

Conference standings

Major conference standings

Minor conference standings

NAIA standings

Bowl games

Major bowls

Other bowls

Small college

NAIA postseason

Final polls

Undefeated teams

Heisman Trophy voting

Statistical leaders

Individual

Total offense

Passing

Rushing

Receiving

Scoring

Team

Total offense

Rushing offense

Passing offense

Total defense

Rushing defense

Passing defense

See also

References