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1956 college football season

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The 1956 college football season was the 88th season of intercollegiate football in the United States. It finished with five teams having claim to a national championship:

At the small-college level, Montana State (9–0–1) and Saint Joseph's (8–1–1 ) played to a scoreless tie in the NAIA national championship game.

Notre Dame quarterback Paul Hornung won the Heisman Trophy, and Oklahoma's Tommy McDonald won the Maxwell Award. Individual statistical leaders in major college football included Stanford quarterback John Brodie with 1,642 yards of total offense and 1,633 passing yards, Wyoming back Jim Crawford with 1,104 rushing yards, and Oklahoma halfback Clendon Thomas with 108 points scored.

Conference and program changes

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One new conference began play in 1956: Ivy League

One new program began to play in 1956: Air Force Falcons.

Season chronology

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September

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In the preseason poll released on September 17, the defending champion Oklahoma Sooners, coming into the season with a 30-game winning streak, were the first place choice for 116 of 149 writers casting votes. They were followed by Michigan State, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech and Ohio State. New polls were issued weekly on Monday.

On September 22, No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 2 Michigan State were idle. No. 3 Notre Dame lost in Dallas to unranked SMU, 19–13, and dropped out of the top five for the season (and finished 2–8), while SMU would rise to fifth. No. 4 Georgia Tech won at Kentucky, 14–6. No. 5 Ohio State, which had not started play, fell out of the Top 5 and was replaced by No. 7 TCU, which had opened with a 32–0 win at Kansas. The first regular AP poll was No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Georgia Tech, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 4 TCU, and No. 5 SMU.

September 29, No. 1 Oklahoma opened its season with a 36–0 win over North Carolina. In Dallas, No. 2 Georgia Tech visited No. 5 SMU and narrowly won, 9–7. No. 3 Michigan State won, 21–7, at No. 12 Stanford. No. 4 TCU was idle and dropped to 8th, while No. 8 Ohio State rose to 4th after a 34–7 win hosting Nebraska. No. 13 Michigan, which had beaten UCLA, 42–13, rose to fifth. The next poll was No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Michigan State, No. 3 Georgia Tech, No. 4 Ohio State, and No. 5 Michigan.

October

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October 6 No. 1 Oklahoma registered another shutout, beating Kansas State 66–0. No. 2 Michigan State met No. 5 Michigan in the rain before a crowd of 101,001 at Ann Arbor, and MSU Coach Duffy Daugherty's "umbrella defense" forced two Michigan turnovers that led to the Spartans' 9–0 win No. 3 Georgia Tech was idle, and No. 4 Ohio State won 32–20 at home before 82,881 over Stanford.[2] The poll saw Michigan drop to 12th, while No. 8 TCU (which beat Arkansas 41–6 on national television) returned to the top five: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Michigan State, No. 3 Georgia Tech, No. 4 TCU, and No. 5 Ohio State.

October 13 At Dallas, No. 1 Oklahoma beat Texas 45–0, having outscored its opposition 147–0 in three games. A commentator of the day wrote, "The overpowering charge of the big red-shirted Oklahoma line ahead of adroit Quarterback Jimmy Harris is just one of the reasons why Oklahoma may be the greatest college football team of all time... They showed it in the sudden, lifting charge of a line which moved all of a piece, like a wave breaking evenly along a beach."[3] No. 2 Michigan State defeated Indiana 53–6 at home. No. 3 Georgia Tech beat LSU, 39–7. No. 4 TCU won at Alabama 23–6, and No. 5 Ohio State won 26–6 at Illinois. The top five remained unchanged.

October 20 No. 1 Oklahoma gave up its first points of the season, but registered its fourth win, 34–12, at Kansas. No. 2 Michigan State stayed unbeaten with a 47–14 win at Notre Dame. No. 3 Georgia Tech beat Auburn 28–7. In a game that would ultimately determine the SWC championship, No. 4 TCU lost at No. 14 Texas A&M, 7–6. No. 5 Ohio State lost to Penn State by the same 7–6 score. No. 7 Tennessee, which had beaten Alabama 24–0, rose to 4th, and No. 8 Michigan returned to the Top 5 after its 34–20 win over Northwestern. The next poll: No. 1 Michigan State, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Georgia Tech, No. 4 Tennessee, and No. 5 Michigan.

October 27 The new No. 1 Michigan State went to Champaign, and had a 13–0 lead over unranked Illinois at halftime. Abe Woodson plunged for a score to cut the lead to 13–6 after three quarters. In the fourth, Woodson ran 70 yards from scrimmage to help tie the game 13–13. After an MSU field goal was short, Woodson ran the ball up to the Illini 18. Woodson, who had once held the world record in the 50 yard high hurdles,[4] took a short pass and dashed 82 yards for a touchdown, leaping over State's Art Johnson 30 yards from goal, to pull off the 20–13 upset. No. 2 Oklahoma was determined to prove itself number 1, and Coach Bud Wilkinson directed the team to six touchdowns for a 40–0 win at Notre Dame. No. 3 Georgia Tech beat No. 15 Tulane by the same 40–0 margin. No. 4 Tennessee beat Maryland 34–7 to stay unbeaten. No. 5 Michigan had its second loss, falling to unranked Minnesota at home, 20–7. No. 7 Texas A&M, which had extended its record to 5–0–1 with a 19–13 win at No. 8 Baylor, replaced the Wolverines. The next poll: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Georgia Tech, No. 3 Tennessee, No. 4 Michigan State, and No. 5 Texas A&M.

November

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November 3 Unbeaten No. 1 Oklahoma (5–0), met the Colorado Buffaloes (5–1) on the road, and were losing 19–6 at halftime to a team that was a four-touchdown underdog, but came back with touchdowns by Tommy McDonald and Clendon Thomas for a difficult 27–19 win.[5] The rest of top five won in shutouts: No. 2 Georgia Tech won 7–0 at Duke, No. 3 Tennessee over North Carolina 20–0, No. 4 Michigan State crushed Wisconsin 33–0, and No. 5 Texas A&M beat Arkansas 27–0. The poll remained unchanged.

November 10 While No. 1 Oklahoma registered its fifth shutout in seven games, trouncing Iowa State 44–0, No. 2 Georgia Tech and No. 3 Tennessee met in Atlanta for a game that proved to determine the SEC title. There were 23 punts altogether, and no score until midway through the third quarter, when Tennessee end Buddy Cruze noticed that Tech had stopped double-teaming him. Halfback Johnny Majors (who would later be head coach for UT) passed to Cruze at the 35–yard line, and Cruze ran 64 yards down to the Tech goal line, setting up the touchdown that won the game 6–0.[6] In the poll that followed, Tennessee was the new No. 1 by a margin of 2 points (1,446 to 1,444) over Oklahoma. No. 4 Michigan State narrowly beat Purdue, 12–9. No. 5 Texas A&M beat SMU 33–7 in Dallas, and increased its record to 7–0–1. Though on probation since 1955 for recruiting violations, coach Bear Bryant's Aggies had appealed to the NCAA to allow them to play in the postseason (as the top contenders for the Southwest Conference title, they would receive an automatic bid in the Cotton Bowl). The next day, however, the NCAA announced that Texas A&M was still banned, because of an additional recruiting violation of a basketball player.[7] The next poll: No. 1 Tennessee, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 4 Georgia Tech, and No. 5 Texas A&M.

November 17 No. 1 Tennessee beat visiting No. 19 Ole Miss 27–7, while No. 2 Oklahoma showed off its offense in crushing Missouri 67–14, sufficiently enough to regain the top spot in the next poll. No. 3 Michigan State traveled to Minnesota, which had been No. 6 a week before, but dropped to No. 17 after a loss to Iowa. The MSU visitors lost, 14–13, and dropped to tenth place in the next poll. No. 4 Georgia Tech beat Alabama 27–0. No. 5 Texas A&M beat visiting Rice, 21–7. No. 7 Iowa, which clinched an unexpected Big Ten championship by defeating No. 6 Ohio State 6–0, took Michigan State's place in the poll that followed. The Top 5 was No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Tennessee, No. 3 Iowa, No. 4 Texas A&M, and No. 5 Georgia Tech.

November 24 No. 1 Oklahoma gained 656 net yards in a defeat of visiting Nebraska 54–6. No. 2 Tennessee beat Kentucky 20–7. No. 3 Iowa finished its season with a 48–8 non-league win over Notre Dame, then accepted a bid to the Rose Bowl to play the PCC champion, No. 11 Oregon State. No. 4 Texas A&M was idle as it prepared for its Thanksgiving Day game with Texas, which it won 34–21. In Jacksonville, No. 5 Georgia Tech beat No. 13 Florida 28–0, and traded places with A&M. Tech would be invited back to the city for the Gator Bowl at season's end. The next poll: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Tennessee, No. 3 Iowa, No. 4 Georgia Tech, and No. 5 Texas A&M.

December 1 No. 1 Oklahoma closed its season with a 53–0 win over Oklahoma A&M, finishing 10–0, and with a 466–51 finish in points. Only one of its ten opponents (Colorado) finished 1956 with a winning record. In Nashville, No. 2 Tennessee beat Vanderbilt 27–7 to close with a 10–0 record and a spot in the Sugar Bowl, where it would face 8–2 Baylor. No. 4 Georgia Tech closed with a 35–0 win at Georgia. Unbeaten and once-tied (9–0–1), No. 5 Texas A&M won the Southwest Conference title, but the ban against post-season play sent runner-up TCU to the Cotton Bowl instead. The top five teams in the final poll remained the same from the previous week.

Conference standings

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Major conference standings

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1956 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 19 Clemson $ 4 0 1 7 2 2
Duke 4 1 0 5 4 1
South Carolina 5 2 0 7 3 0
Maryland 2 2 1 2 7 1
North Carolina 2 3 1 2 7 1
NC State 2 4 0 3 7 0
Wake Forest 1 5 1 2 5 3
Virginia 1 4 0 3 7 0
Rankings from AP Poll[8]
1956 Big Seven Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Oklahoma $ 6 0 0 10 0 0
No. 20 Colorado 4 1 1 8 2 1
Missouri 3 2 1 4 5 1
Nebraska 3 3 0 4 6 0
Kansas 2 4 0 3 6 1
Kansas State 2 4 0 3 7 0
Iowa State 0 6 0 2 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1956 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 3 Iowa $ 5 1 0 9 1 0
No. 7 Michigan 5 2 0 7 2 0
No. 12 Minnesota 4 1 2 6 1 2
No. 9 Michigan State 4 2 0 7 2 0
No. 15 Ohio State 4 2 0 6 3 0
Northwestern 3 3 1 4 4 1
Purdue 1 4 2 3 4 2
Illinois 1 4 2 2 5 2
Wisconsin 0 4 3 1 5 3
Indiana 1 5 0 3 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1956 Border Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Texas Western $ 5 0 0 9 2 0
Arizona State 3 1 0 9 1 0
West Texas State 2 2 0 8 2 0
Arizona 1 2 0 4 6 0
Hardin–Simmons 1 3 0 4 6 0
New Mexico A&M 0 4 0 1 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Ivy League football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 17 Yale $ 7 0 0 8 1 0
Princeton 5 2 0 7 2 0
Dartmouth 4 3 0 5 4 0
Penn 4 3 0 4 5 0
Brown 3 4 0 5 4 0
Columbia 2 5 0 3 6 0
Harvard 2 5 0 2 6 0
Cornell 1 6 0 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from Coaches Poll
1956 Middle Three Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Lehigh $ 2 0 0 7 2 0
Rutgers 1 1 0 3 7 0
Lafayette 0 2 0 6 3 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Missouri Valley Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Houston $ 4 0 0 7 2 1
Tulsa 2 1 1 7 2 1
Oklahoma A&M 2 1 1 3 5 2
Wichita 1 3 0 4 7 0
Detroit 0 4 0 2 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Pacific Coast Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 10 Oregon State $ 6 1 1 7 3 1
No. 18 USC 5 2 0 8 2 0
UCLA 5 2 0 7 3 0
Washington 4 4 0 5 5 0
Oregon 3 3 2 4 4 2
Stanford 3 4 0 4 6 0
Washington State 2 5 1 3 6 1
California 2 5 0 3 7 0
Idaho 0 4 0 4 5 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1956 Skyline Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 16 Wyoming 7 0 0 10 0 0
Utah 5 1 0 5 5 0
Denver 4 3 0 6 4 0
Utah State 4 3 0 6 4 0
Colorado A&M 2 4 1 2 7 1
New Mexico 2 4 0 4 6 0
BYU 1 5 1 2 7 1
Montana 1 6 0 1 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from Coaches Poll
1956 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Tennessee $ 6 0 0 10 1 0
No. 4 Georgia Tech 7 1 0 10 1 0
Florida 5 2 0 6 3 1
Ole Miss 4 2 0 7 3 0
Auburn 4 3 0 7 3 0
Kentucky 4 4 0 6 4 0
Tulane 3 3 0 6 4 0
Vanderbilt 2 5 0 5 5 0
Alabama 2 5 0 2 7 1
Mississippi State 2 5 0 4 6 0
LSU 1 5 0 3 7 0
Georgia 1 6 0 3 6 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1956 Southern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
West Virginia $ 5 0 0 6 4 0
VPI 3 0 0 7 2 1
No. 17 George Washington 5 1 0 8 1 1
Davidson 2 2 1 5 3 1
Furman 2 2 0 2 8 0
VMI 2 3 1 3 6 1
Richmond 2 5 0 4 5 0
The Citadel 1 3 0 3 5 1
Washington and Lee 0 1 0 1 7 0
William & Mary 0 5 0 0 9 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1956 Southwest Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 5 Texas A&M $ 6 0 0 9 0 1
No. 14 TCU 5 1 0 8 3 0
No. 11 Baylor 4 2 0 9 2 0
Arkansas 3 3 0 6 4 0
SMU 2 4 0 4 6 0
Rice 1 5 0 4 6 0
Texas 0 6 0 1 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1956 NCAA University Division independents football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 6 Miami (FL)     8 1 1
No. 16 Navy     6 1 2
No. 8 Syracuse     7 2 0
Air Force     6 2 1
Penn State     6 2 1
No. 13 Pittsburgh     7 3 1
Pacific (CA)     6 3 1
Army     5 3 1
Holy Cross     5 3 1
Villanova     5 4 0
Boston College     5 4 0
Florida State     5 4 1
Cincinnati     4 5 0
Colgate     4 5 0
Dayton     4 6 0
Drake     3 6 0
San Jose State     2 7 1
Texas Tech     2 7 1
Notre Dame     2 8 0
Boston University     1 5 2
Marquette     0 9 0
Rankings from AP Poll

Minor conference standings

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1956 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Fresno State 2 0 0 8 2 0
San Diego State 2 1 0 4 3 2
Santa Barbara 1 1 0 5 5 0
Los Angeles State 0 1 0 3 5 1
Cal Poly 0 2 0 7 3 0
  • No champion named for the 1956 season
1956 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
North Carolina College + 5 0 2 5 2 2
Delaware State + 5 0 1 7 1 1
Morgan State + 5 0 1 5 2 1
Maryland State 5 1 1 6 2 1
St. Augustine's 5 1 1 6 1 1
Bluefield State 5 1 0 6 3 0
Fayetteville State 4 2 0 4 3 0
Virginia Union 4 3 0 6 3 0
North Carolina A&T 3 3 0 4 4 0
Winston-Salem State 3 3 1 4 4 1
Shaw 3 4 1 3 4 1
Hampton 2 7 1 2 7 1
Johnson C. Smith 2 5 0 3 5 0
Virginia State 1 6 1 1 7 1
Lincoln (PA) 1 6 0 1 6 0
Howard 1 5 0 4 5 0
Saint Paul's (VA) 0 7 0 1 7 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Central Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
St. Benedict's $ 4 1 0 7 3 0
Pittsburg State 3 1 1 7 2 1
Southwestern (KS) 3 1 1 4 4 2
Washburn 3 2 0 3 6 0
Emporia State 1 4 0 2 6 1
Fort Hays State 0 5 1 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 College Conference of Illinois football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Wheaton (IL) $ 7 0 0 7 1 0
Millikin 6 1 0 6 2 0
Carroll (WI) 5 2 0 5 3 0
Lake Forest 3 3 1 3 4 1
Illinois Wesleyan 3 3 1 3 5 1
North Central (IL) 1 6 0 2 6 0
Elmhurst 1 6 0 1 6 0
Augustana (IL) 1 6 0 1 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Far Western Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Humboldt State + 4 1 0 9 2 0
Cal Aggies + 4 1 0 7 2 0
San Francisco State + 4 1 0 5 5 0
Chico State 1 3 1 2 6 1
Sacramento State 1 4 0 3 5 1
Nevada 0 4 1 0 7 1
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Gulf Coast Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
North Texas State + 2 0 1 7 2 1
Trinity (TX) + 2 0 1 5 3 1
Abilene Christian 1 2 0 4 6 0
Midwestern (TX) 0 3 0 3 7 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Gulf States Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Southeastern Louisiana $ 4 1 0 6 3 0
Northwestern State 3 1 1 6 2 2
Louisiana Tech 3 1 1 4 3 2
Northeast Louisiana State 2 3 0 7 3 0
McNeese State 2 3 0 5 5 0
Southwestern Louisiana 1 4 0 4 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Hoosier Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Hanover $ 6 0 0 8 1 0
Anderson (IN) 5 1 0 6 2 0
Indiana Central 4 2 0 4 5 0
Franklin (IN) 3 3 0 5 4 0
Manchester (IN) 2 4 0 3 6 0
Taylor 1 5 0 3 6 0
Earlham 0 6 0 1 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Saint Joseph's (IN) $^ 6 0 0 8 1 1
Butler 5 1 0 6 2 0
Valparaiso 4 2 0 6 4 0
Evansville 3 3 0 4 5 0
Ball State 2 4 0 4 4 0
DePauw 1 5 0 1 6 1
Indiana State 0 6 0 2 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA playoff (Aluminum Bowl) participant
1956 Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Central Michigan $ 6 0 0 9 0 0
Western Illinois 4 2 0 6 3 0
Eastern Michigan 3 3 0 4 4 0
Illinois State Normal 3 3 0 4 4 1
Southern Illinois 3 3 0 4 5 0
Eastern Illinois 2 4 0 2 7 0
Northern Illinois State 0 6 0 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Iowa Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Central (IA) $ 7 1 0 7 1 0
Simpson (IA) 5 2 1 5 2 1
Luther 5 2 1 5 3 1
Iowa Wesleyan 5 3 0 5 4 0
Dubuque 3 3 2 3 3 2
Parsons 3 5 0 5 5 0
Buena Vista 3 5 0 3 5 1
Upper Iowa 1 6 1 2 6 2
Wartburg 0 7 1 0 7 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Lone Star Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Sam Houston State $ 6 0 0 10 0 0
Texas A&I 5 1 0 7 3 0
Southwest Texas State 4 2 0 6 3 0
Stephen F. Austin 3 3 0 4 6 0
Lamar Tech 2 4 0 4 4 1
East Texas State 1 5 0 2 8 0
Sul Ross 0 6 0 1 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Mason–Dixon Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Johns Hopkins $ 3 0 0 4 3 1
Hampden–Sydney 3 1 0 7 2 0
Randolph–Macon 2 2 0 4 4 0
Gallaudet 0 0 1 0 5 1
Bridgewater 0 2 1 3 4 1
Western Maryland 0 3 0 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Hillsdale $ 6 0 0 9 0 0
Kalamazoo 5 1 0 5 3 0
Hope 4 2 0 4 4 0
Albion 3 3 0 3 5 0
Adrian 2 4 0 3 5 0
Alma 1 5 0 2 7 0
Olivet 0 6 0 0 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Mid-American Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Bowling Green $ 5 0 1 8 0 1
Miami (OH) 4 0 1 7 1 1
Kent State 4 2 0 7 2 0
Marshall 2 4 0 3 6 0
Ohio 2 4 0 2 7 0
Western Michigan 1 4 0 2 7 0
Toledo 1 5 0 1 7 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Mid-Ohio League football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Bluffton $ 5 0 0 8 1 0
Findlay 4 1 0 7 2 0
Wilmington (OH) 3 2 0 3 4 0
Ashland 2 3 0 3 5 0
Ohio Northern 0 4 1 0 7 1
Defiance 0 4 1 0 8 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Midwest Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Tennessee A&I $ 4 0 0 10 0 0
No. 3 Grambling 1 1 0 8 1 0
No. 7 Jackson State 1 1 0 6 2 2
No. 14 Central State (OH) 1 1 1 4 3 1
Lincoln (MO) 1 2 0 5 4 0
Kentucky State 0 3 1 3 5 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from Pittsburgh Courier[9]
1956 Midwest Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Carleton + 6 2 0 6 2 0
Knox + 6 2 0 6 2 0
St. Olaf + 6 2 0 6 2 0
Ripon 4 3 1 4 3 1
Coe 4 4 0 4 4 0
Lawrence 4 4 0 4 4 0
Cornell (IA) 3 5 0 3 5 0
Monmouth (IL) 1 6 1 1 6 1
Grinnell 1 7 0 1 7 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
St. Thomas (MN) $ 7 0 0 8 0 0
Concordia (MN) 5 2 0 6 3 0
Macalester 4 3 0 5 3 0
Gustavus Adolphus 4 3 0 4 5 0
Minnesota–Duluth 3 4 0 3 4 0
Saint John's (MN) 2 4 1 3 4 1
Augsburg 2 4 1 2 5 1
Hamline 0 7 0 1 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Minnesota State College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Winona State $ 3 1 0 4 4 0
St. Cloud State 2 1 1 6 2 1
Moorhead State 2 1 1 3 3 1
Mankato State 1 2 1 6 2 1
Bemidji State 0 3 1 2 4 2
  • $ – Conference champion
  • St. Cloud State forfeited a win over Moorhead State and Moorhead State forfeited a win over Winona State.
1956 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Central Missouri State + 4 1 0 7 2 0
Missouri–Rolla + 4 1 0 6 3 0
NE Missouri State 3 2 0 3 5 0
SW Missouri State 3 2 0 3 6 0
NW Missouri State 1 4 0 2 7 0
SE Missouri State 0 5 0 2 7 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 North Central Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Morningside $ 4 1 1 6 1 1
Augustana (SD) 4 2 0 6 3 0
South Dakota 4 2 0 4 4 0
North Dakota State 3 3 0 5 4 0
South Dakota State 3 3 0 4 5 0
North Dakota 2 4 0 2 6 0
Iowa State Teachers 0 5 1 2 5 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Ohio Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Heidelberg $ 5 1 0 8 1 0
Hiram 4 1 0 5 3 0
Denison 5 2 0 7 2 0
Muskingum 5 2 1 5 2 1
Wittenberg 5 2 1 5 2 1
Capital 4 2 1 5 2 1
Wooster 4 3 1 5 3 1
Otterbein 3 4 0 4 5 0
Akron 3 5 1 3 5 1
Kenyon 1 3 1 1 5 1
Mount Union 2 5 0 2 6 0
Oberlin 1 4 1 1 6 1
Ohio Wesleyan 1 4 1 1 7 1
Marietta 0 5 0 0 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Middle Tennessee $ 5 0 0 7 2 0
Murray State 4 1 0 6 4 0
Western Kentucky 2 3 0 5 4 0
Tennessee Tech 2 3 0 5 4 1
Eastern Kentucky 2 3 0 4 5 0
Morehead State 0 5 0 2 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Pennsylvania State Teachers College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
West Chester $ 4 0 0 7 1 0
East Stroudsburg 6 1 0 7 2 0
Indiana (PA) 4 1 0 5 4 0
Slippery Rock 2 1 0 2 5 0
Shippensburg 5 1 0 6 2 0
Lock Haven 4 2 0 6 2 0
Edinboro 3 2 0 5 4 0
Clarion 2 3 0 2 6 0
Millersville 2 5 0 2 6 0
Kutztown 1 3 0 5 4 0
Bloomsburg 1 3 0 5 2 1
California (PA) 1 6 0 2 7 0
Mansfield 1 4 0 2 5 0
Cheyney 0 4 0 1 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • Conference standings were based on the Saylor system of ratings.
1956 Presidents' Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Wayne State (MI) $ 3 0 1 4 2 1
John Carroll 2 0 1 4 1 2
Western Reserve 1 2 0 4 3 0
Case Tech 0 4 0 1 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Rocky Mountain Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Montana State $^ 5 0 0 9 0 1
Idaho State 3 2 0 6 3 0
Colorado State–Greeley 3 2 0 5 4 0
Western State (CO) 2 3 0 4 6 0
Colorado Mines 1 4 0 3 6 0
Colorado College 1 4 0 2 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA playoff participant
1956 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Redlands $ 4 0 0 9 0 0
Pomona-Claremont 2 1 1 4 3 1
Whittier 2 1 1 4 3 3
Occidental 1 3 0 3 6 0
Caltech 0 4 0 3 5 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Texas Southern + 5 1 0 9 2 0
Wiley + 5 1 0 6 3 1
Southern 4 2 0 5 5 0
Prairie View A&M 4 2 0 5 5 0
Langston 2 4 0 3 7 0
Arkansas AM&N 0 5 1 2 6 1
Texas College 0 5 1 2 6 1
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Virginia Little Eight Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Emory and Henry $ 2 0 0 9 1 0
Hampden–Sydney 2 1 0 7 2 0
Randolph–Macon 1 2 0 4 4 0
Bridgewater 0 2 0 3 4 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Wisconsin State College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Eau Claire State + 7 0 0 7 1 0
Platteville State + 5 0 0 5 1 0
River Falls State 4 1 0 6 2 0
Stevens Point State 3 3 0 4 4 0
Whitewater State 2 3 0 4 4 0
Superior State 2 3 0 4 5 0
La Crosse State 2 3 0 3 6 0
Oshkosh State 2 4 0 3 4 0
Stout State 0 5 0 1 7 0
Milwaukee 0 5 0 0 8 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Yankee Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Connecticut $ 3 0 1 6 2 1
Maine 3 1 0 5 2 0
New Hampshire 2 1 1 3 4 1
Vermont 1 2 0 2 5 0
UMass 1 3 0 2 5 1
Rhode Island 1 4 0 2 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 NCAA College Division independents football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Alfred     8 0 0
Northern Michigan     7 0 1
St. Norbert     8 1 0
Carthage     8 2 0
Tampa     7 2 0
Cal Poly San Dimas     6 2 0
Mississippi Southern     7 2 1
Wabash     6 2 1
Hawaii     7 3 0
Hofstra     7 3 0
Xavier     7 3 0
Franklin & Marshall     5 2 1
Louisville     6 3 0
Pepperdine     6 3 0
Washington University     6 3 0
La Verne     6 4 0
Buffalo     5 3 0
Drexel     5 3 0
Long Beach State     5 3 0
Delaware     5 3 1
Memphis State     5 4 1
Arkansas State     5 4 0
Chattanooga     5 4 0
Baldwin–Wallace     4 5 0
Washington & Jefferson     3 4 1
Rose Poly     3 4 0
Bucknell     3 5 0
Carnegie Tech     3 5 0
Temple     3 5 0
Howard (AL)     2 5 2
Sewanee     1 6 1
UC Riverside     1 6 0

NAIA standings

[edit]
1956 Badger-Illini Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Milton $ 5 0 0 6 0 0
Lakeland 3 2 0 3 4 0
Northwestern (WI) 3 2 0 ? ? ?
Wisconsin Tech 3 2 0 ? ? ?
Concordia (IL) 1 4 0 1 6 0
St. Procopius 0 5 0 0 5 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Central Church College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Tarkio $ 3 0 0 7 1 0
Westmar 2 1 0 2 4 2
Concordia (NE) 1 2 0 2 6 0
Dana 0 3 0 0 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Central Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
St. Benedict's $ 4 1 0 7 3 0
Pittsburg State 3 1 1 7 2 1
Southwestern (KS) 3 1 1 4 4 2
Washburn 3 2 0 3 6 0
Emporia State 1 4 0 2 6 1
Fort Hays State 0 5 1 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 College Conference of Illinois football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Wheaton (IL) $ 7 0 0 7 1 0
Millikin 6 1 0 6 2 0
Carroll (WI) 5 2 0 5 3 0
Lake Forest 3 3 1 3 4 1
Illinois Wesleyan 3 3 1 3 5 1
North Central (IL) 1 6 0 2 6 0
Elmhurst 1 6 0 1 6 0
Augustana (IL) 1 6 0 1 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Evergreen Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Puget Sound $ 6 0 0 8 0 1
Eastern Washington 3 2 1 5 2 1
Whitworth 3 3 0 5 4 0
Pacific Lutheran 3 3 0 3 3 1
Central Washington 2 3 1 3 4 1
Western Washington 2 4 0 2 6 0
UBC 1 5 0 ? ? ?
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Frontier Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Arizona State–Flagstaff + 3 0 0 8 2 0
New Mexico Military + 3 0 0 6 3 0
New Mexico Highlands 2 2 0 5 2 1
New Mexico Western 1 3 0 5 4 0
Panhandle A&M 0 4 0 3 7 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Saint Joseph's (IN) $^ 6 0 0 8 1 1
Butler 5 1 0 6 2 0
Valparaiso 4 2 0 6 4 0
Evansville 3 3 0 4 5 0
Ball State 2 4 0 4 4 0
DePauw 1 5 0 1 6 1
Indiana State 0 6 0 2 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA playoff (Aluminum Bowl) participant
1956 Iowa Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Central (IA) $ 7 1 0 7 1 0
Simpson (IA) 5 2 1 5 2 1
Luther 5 2 1 5 3 1
Iowa Wesleyan 5 3 0 5 4 0
Dubuque 3 3 2 3 3 2
Parsons 3 5 0 5 5 0
Buena Vista 3 5 0 3 5 1
Upper Iowa 1 6 1 2 6 2
Wartburg 0 7 1 0 7 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Kansas Wesleyan $ 7 0 0 8 1 0
College of Emporia 6 1 0 7 2 0
McPherson 5 2 0 5 4 0
Bethel (KS) 4 3 0 4 5 0
Baker 3 4 0 4 5 0
Friends 2 5 0 2 6 1
Bethany (KS) 1 6 0 1 7 0
Ottawa 0 7 0 0 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Hillsdale $ 6 0 0 9 0 0
Kalamazoo 5 1 0 5 3 0
Hope 4 2 0 4 4 0
Albion 3 3 0 3 5 0
Adrian 2 4 0 3 5 0
Alma 1 5 0 2 7 0
Olivet 0 6 0 0 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Mid-Ohio League football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Bluffton $ 5 0 0 8 1 0
Findlay 4 1 0 7 2 0
Wilmington (OH) 3 2 0 3 4 0
Ashland 2 3 0 3 5 0
Ohio Northern 0 4 1 0 7 1
Defiance 0 4 1 0 8 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Midwest Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Carleton + 6 2 0 6 2 0
Knox + 6 2 0 6 2 0
St. Olaf + 6 2 0 6 2 0
Ripon 4 3 1 4 3 1
Coe 4 4 0 4 4 0
Lawrence 4 4 0 4 4 0
Cornell (IA) 3 5 0 3 5 0
Monmouth (IL) 1 6 1 1 6 1
Grinnell 1 7 0 1 7 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
St. Thomas (MN) $ 7 0 0 8 0 0
Concordia (MN) 5 2 0 6 3 0
Macalester 4 3 0 5 3 0
Gustavus Adolphus 4 3 0 4 5 0
Minnesota–Duluth 3 4 0 3 4 0
Saint John's (MN) 2 4 1 3 4 1
Augsburg 2 4 1 2 5 1
Hamline 0 7 0 1 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Minnesota State College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Winona State $ 3 1 0 4 4 0
St. Cloud State 2 1 1 6 2 1
Moorhead State 2 1 1 3 3 1
Mankato State 1 2 1 6 2 1
Bemidji State 0 3 1 2 4 2
  • $ – Conference champion
  • St. Cloud State forfeited a win over Moorhead State and Moorhead State forfeited a win over Winona State.
1956 Missouri College Athletic Union football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
William Jewell $ 1 0 1 6 3 1
Tarkio 2 1 0 7 1 0
Missouri Valley 0 0 1 8 2 1
Culver–Stockton 1 1 0 6 3 0
Central (MO) 0 2 0 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Montana Collegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Carroll (MT) $ 4 0 0 6 2 0
Eastern Montana 2 1 1 3 2 1
Rocky Mountain 2 2 0 2 4 1
Western Montana 1 3 0 ? ? ?
Montana Mines 0 3 1 ? ? ?
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Nebraska College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Kearney State $ 7 0 0 9 0 0
Hastings 5 1 0 5 2 0
Peru State 5 2 0 6 3 0
Chadron State 3 2 1 5 2 1
Nebraska Wesleyan 3 4 0 3 7 0
Doane 2 4 1 4 4 1
Midland 1 6 0 2 6 0
Wayne State (NE) 0 7 0 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 North Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Jamestown $ 4 1 1 4 2 1
Mayville State 4 2 0 4 3 0
Dickinson State 4 2 0 4 2 0
Wahpeton Science 3 2 1 4 2 1
Minot State 3 2 1 3 3 1
Bismarck JC 3 3 0 3 3 0
Valley City State 1 2 3 1 4 3
Ellendale 2 4 0 2 4 0
Bottineau 0 6 0 0 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 North State Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Lenoir Rhyne $ 6 0 0 10 0 0
Catawba 4 2 0 5 4 1
Elon 4 2 0 5 5 0
Appalachian State 3 3 0 3 6 0
East Carolina 2 3 0 2 7 1
Guilford 0 4 0 1 7 0
Western Carolina 0 5 0 1 9 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Northwest Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Linfield $ 3 1 1 6 1 2
Lewis & Clark 3 2 0 7 3 0
Willamette 2 1 2 2 4 2
Whitman 2 2 1 4 4 1
College of Idaho 2 3 0 4 5 0
[[{{{school}}}|Pacific (OR)]] 1 4 0 3 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Oklahoma Collegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
[[{{{school}}}|Northeastern State]] + 4 1 0 8 2 0
[[{{{school}}}|Central State (OK)]] + 4 1 0 7 2 0
[[{{{school}}}|SW Oklahoma State]] 3 1 1 5 3 1
[[{{{school}}}|East Central]] 2 3 0 2 7 0
[[{{{school}}}|SE Oklahoma State]] 1 3 1 4 3 0
[[{{{school}}}|NW Oklahoma State]] 0 5 0 4 5 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 Oregon Collegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
[[{{{school}}}|Eastern Oregon]] $ 4 0 0 5 3 0
[[{{{school}}}|Southern Oregon]] 2 2 0 4 5 0
[[{{{school}}}|Oregon College]] 2 2 0 3 4 0
[[{{{school}}}|Portland State]] 1 3 0 2 5 1
[[{{{school}}}|Oregon Tech]] 1 3 0 4 4 1
  • $ – Conference champion
1956 Pennsylvania State Teachers College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
West Chester $ 4 0 0 7 1 0
East Stroudsburg 6 1 0 7 2 0
Indiana (PA) 4 1 0 5 4 0
Slippery Rock 2 1 0 2 5 0
Shippensburg 5 1 0 6 2 0
Lock Haven 4 2 0 6 2 0
Edinboro 3 2 0 5 4 0
Clarion 2 3 0 2 6 0
Millersville 2 5 0 2 6 0
Kutztown 1 3 0 5 4 0
Bloomsburg 1 3 0 5 2 1
California (PA) 1 6 0 2 7 0
Mansfield 1 4 0 2 5 0
Cheyney 0 4 0 1 6 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • Conference standings were based on the Saylor system of ratings.
1956 Rocky Mountain Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Montana State $^ 5 0 0 9 0 1
Idaho State 3 2 0 6 3 0
Colorado State–Greeley 3 2 0 5 4 0
Western State (CO) 2 3 0 4 6 0
Colorado Mines 1 4 0 3 6 0
Colorado College 1 4 0 2 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NAIA playoff participant
1956 South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
[[{{{school}}}|Huron]] $ 7 0 0 8 1 0
[[{{{school}}}|Southern State (SD)]] 6 1 0 8 1 0
[[{{{school}}}|Northern State]] 4 2 0 6 3 0
[[{{{school}}}|Black Hills]] 3 3 0 4 4 0
[[{{{school}}}|Dakota Wesleyan]] 4 4 0 4 4 0
[[{{{school}}}|Yankton]] 3 3 0 3 4 1
[[{{{school}}}|General Beadle]] 1 3 1 3 4 1
[[{{{school}}}|South Dakota Mines]] 0 6 1 0 7 1
[[{{{school}}}|Sioux Falls]] 0 6 0 0 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • Northern state forfeited wins over Huron and Southern State.
1956 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Texas Southern + 5 1 0 9 2 0
Wiley + 5 1 0 6 3 1
Southern 4 2 0 5 5 0
Prairie View A&M 4 2 0 5 5 0
Langston 2 4 0 3 7 0
Arkansas AM&N 0 5 1 2 6 1
Texas College 0 5 1 2 6 1
  • + – Conference co-champions
1956 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
[[{{{school}}}|West Liberty State]] $ 5 0 0 7 2 0
[[{{{school}}}|Fairmont State]] 7 1 0 7 1 0
[[{{{school}}}|Shepherd]] 4 1 0 6 2 0
[[{{{school}}}|Potomac State]] 6 2 0 6 2 0
[[{{{school}}}|Salem]] 4 3 0 4 4 0
[[{{{school}}}|Glenville State]] 2 6 0 2 6 0
[[{{{school}}}|West Virginia Tech]] 1 3 0 4 4 1
[[{{{school}}}|West Virginia Wesleyan]] 1 4 0 3 5 0
[[{{{school}}}|Davis & Elkins]] 0 6 0 1 7 0
[[{{{school}}}|Concord]] 0 7 0 0 9 0
[[{{{school}}}|Morris Harvey]] * 1 0 0 5 4 0
[[{{{school}}}|Bethany (WV)]] * 2 0 0 6 2 0
[[{{{school}}}|West Virginia State]] * 1 0 0 4 3 0
Bluefield State * 0 1 0 6 3 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • * – Did not qualify for conference standings
    Conference standings based on power ratings
1956 Wisconsin State College Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Eau Claire State + 7 0 0 7 1 0
Platteville State + 5 0 0 5 1 0
River Falls State 4 1 0 6 2 0
Stevens Point State 3 3 0 4 4 0
Whitewater State 2 3 0 4 4 0
Superior State 2 3 0 4 5 0
La Crosse State 2 3 0 3 6 0
Oshkosh State 2 4 0 3 4 0
Stout State 0 5 0 1 7 0
Milwaukee 0 5 0 0 8 0
  • + – Conference co-champions

Bowl games

[edit]

Major bowls

[edit]

Tuesday, January 1, 1957

Bowl Winner Runner-up
Orange No. 20 Colorado Buffaloes 27 No. 19 Clemson Tigers 21
Cotton No. 14 TCU Horned Frogs 28   No. 8 Syracuse Orangemen 27
Sugar No. 11 Baylor Bears 13   No. 2 Tennessee Volunteers 7
Rose   No. 3 Iowa Hawkeyes 35 No. 10 Oregon State Beavers 19

1956 Aluminum Bowl

[edit]
Championship
December 22, 1956
1956 Aluminum Bowl
   
Saint Joseph's (IN) 0
Montana State 0

Other bowls

[edit]
Bowl Location Date Winner Score Runner-up
Gator Jacksonville, FL December 29   No. 4 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 21–14 No. 13 Pittsburgh Panthers
Sun El Paso, TX January 1 No. 17 George Washington Colonials 13–0        Texas Western Miners

Minor bowls

Bowl Winner Runner-up
Tangerine West Texas State 20 Mississippi Southern 13
Burley Memphis State 32 East Tennessee State 12
Refrigerator Sam Houston State 27 Middle Tennessee State 13

Final polls

[edit]

Final polls were released in the first week of December.

Heisman Trophy voting

[edit]

The Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player

Player School Position 1st 2nd 3rd Total
Paul Hornung Notre Dame QB 197 162 151 1,066
Johnny Majors Tennessee HB 172 171 136 994
Tommy McDonald Oklahoma HB 205 122 114 973
Jerry Tubbs Oklahoma C 121 137 87 724
Jim Brown Syracuse HB 118 68 71 518
Ron Kramer Michigan E 70 104 100 518
John Brodie Stanford QB 39 52 60 281
Jim Parker Ohio State G 34 51 44 248
Ken Ploen Iowa QB 36 10 22 150
Jon Arnett USC HB 20 25 18 128

Source: [14][15]

Statistical leaders

[edit]

Individual

[edit]

Total offense

[edit]

The following players were the individual leaders in total offense during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Player Team Games Plays Total Yds TdR[16]
1 John Brodie Stanford 10 295 1,642 14
2 Paul Hornung Notre Dame 10 205 1,337 10
3 Bob Newman Washington State 10 213 1,177 9
4 Tom Flores Pacific 10 171 1,167 18
5 Guy Martin Colgate 9 208 1,165 10
6 Jim Crawford Wyoming 10 202 1,114 15
7 Johnny Majors Tennessee 10 167 1,101 12
8 Billy Stacy Mississippi State 10 209 1,077 9
9 Bob Reinhart San Jose State 10 212 1,068 12
10 Jim Brown Syracuse 8 162 1,062 15

[17]

Small college

Rank Player Team Games Plays Total Yds
1 Dick Jamieson Bradley 10 240 1925
2 John "Yommie" Costello Pennsylvania Military 9 167 1739
3 Jim Stehlin Brandeis 9 316 1566
4 Edward "Bo" Murray Grambling 9 164 1418
5 Bill Engelhardt Omaha 9 273 1398
6 Williams Western Reserve 7 258 1218
7 Bob Webb St. Ambrose 9 179 1211
8 Bill Rhodes Colorado Western 10 134 1200
9 Joe Ortiz College of Emporia 9 140 1182
10 Ron Parrish Linfield 9 199 1146

[18]

Passing

[edit]

The following players were the individual leaders in pass completions during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Player Team Games Compl. Att. Pct.
Compl.
Yds. Int. TDs
1 John Brodie Stanford 10 139 240 .579 1633 14 12
2 Bob Newman Washington State 10 91 170 .535 1240 8 8
3 Bob Reinhart San Jose State 10 90 172 .523 1138 5 10
4 Guy Martin Colgate 9 88 170 .518 1100 15 9
5 Gene Saur Hardin-Simmons 10 78 133 .586 968 10 8
6 Ralph Hunsaker Arizona 10 75 148 .507 823 12 4
7 Joe Clements Texas 10 74 151 .490 793 16 7
8 Tom Flores Pacific 10 73 127 .575 1119 8 11
9 Charlie Arnold SMU 10 71 157 .452 964 14 8
10 Carroll Johnston BYU 10 71 167 .425 945 15 8

[19]

Small college

Rank Player Team Games Compl. Att. Pct.
Compl.
Yds. Int. TDs
1 Jim Stehlin Brandeis 9 116 206 .563 1155 11 6
2 Dick Jamieson Bradley 10 95 192 .495 1796 12 21
3 Jack Kemp Occidental 9 92 184 .500 1123 8 7
4 Garda Lebanon Valley 8 83 163 .509 874 12 7
5 Williams Western Reserve 7 78 150 .520 872 10 8
6 Bob Webb St. Ambrose 9 77 147 .524 1278 7 14
7 Robert Anastas Amer Intern 9 74 147 .504 833 19 9
7 John "Yommie" Costello Pennsylvania Military 9 74 149 .497 1702 10 17
9 Frank Sudock Albright 9 72 170 .424 993 14 3
10 Ron Parrish Linfeld 9 63 143 .441 889 13 7

[20]

Rushing

[edit]

The following players were the individual leaders in rushing yards during the 1956 season:
Major college

Rank Player Team Games Yds Rushes Avg
1 Jim Crawford Wyoming 10 1,104 200 5.52
2 Billy Ray Barnes Wake Forest 10 1,010 168 6.01
3 Jim Brown Syracuse 8 986 158 6.24
4 Hill Utah State 10 920 140 6.57
5 Jim Bakhtiar Virginia 10 879 203 4.33
6 Mel Dillard Purdue 9 873 193 4.52
7 Tommy McDonald Oklahoma 10 853 119 7.17
8 Clendon Thomas Oklahoma 10 817 104 7.86
9 Don Clark Ohio State 9 797 139 5.73
10 C. R. Roberts USC 10 775 120 6.46
11 Ed Sutton North Carolina 10 748 120 6.23
12 Don Bosseler Miami (FL) 10 723 161 4.49
13 Bobby Mulgado Arizona State 10 721 107 6.74
14 Jim Roseboro Ohio State 9 712 152 4.68
15 Bob Kyasky Army 9 707 129 5.48
16 Tommy Lorino Auburn 10 692 82 8.44
17 Jerry Brown Nebraska 10 690 129 5.35
18 Joel Wells Clemson 10 678 156 4.35
19 Jim Swink TCU 10 665 158 4.21
20 Pete Hart Hardin-Simmons 10 664 131 5.07

[21]

Small college

Rank Player Team Games Yds Rushes Avg
1 Bill Rhodes Colorado Western 10 1200 130 9.23
2 Walter Livingston Heidelberg 9 1086 175 6.21
3 James C. "Pancho" Villa Allegheny 8 1073 134 8.01
4 Edward "Bo" Murray Grambling 9 1028 110 9.35
5 Tom Dingle Wooster 9 1027 175 5.87
6 Jarock St. Norbert 9 1000 125 8.00
7 Addleman College of Emporia 9 964 148 6.51
8 Kimmel Youngstown 8 940 168 5.60
9 Smith Denison 9 913 158 5.78
10 Taylor Geneva 9 869 137 6.34

[22]

Receiving

[edit]

The following players were the individual leaders in receptions during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Player Team Receptions Receiving
Yards
Touchdowns
1 Art Powell San Jose State 40 583 5
2 Bill Steiger Washington State 39 607 5
3 Baird Hardin-Simmons 37 455 1
4 Brad Bomba Indiana 31 407 1
5 Aldrich Idaho 30 409 1
5 James Missouri 30 362 3
7 Jamison Colgate 29 289 6
8 Camera Stanford 28 350 2
9 Farrell Funston Pacific 27 563 5
9 Ellingsen Washington State 27 455 1
9 Wilson Denver 27 383 4

[23]

Small college

Rank Player Team Receptions Receiving
Yards
Touchdowns
1 Tom Rychlec Amer Inter 40 353 3
2 Hill Pennsylvania Military 39 852 10
3 Don Carothers Bradley 33 697 10
4 Jim E. Mora Occidental 32 328 1
5 Anderson Los Angeles State 30 603 7
6 Bob Schembs Whitman 29 392 3
6 Stein Brandeis 29 207 0
8 Westmeyer St. Ambrose 28 538 5
8 Payne William Jewell 28 343 3
10 Tom Zesiger Ohio Wesleyan 27 513 5
10 Cimino Omaha 27 485 5

[24]

Scoring

[edit]

The following players were the individual leaders in scoring during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Player Team Pts TD PAT FG
1 Clendon Thomas Oklahoma 108 18 0 0
2 Jim Brown Syracuse 106 14 22 0
3 Jack Hill Utah State 105 15 15 0
4 Tommy McDonald Oklahoma 102 17 0 0
5 Jim Crawford Wyoming 96 14 12 0
6 Bob Kyasky Army 85 14 1 0
7 John Bayuk Colorado 66 11 0 0
7 Jack Call Colgate 66 11 0 0
9 Dean Derby Washington 63 7 18 1
10 Hewes Agnew Princeton 61 10 1 0
11 Mike Brown Dartmouth 60 10 0 0
11 John David Crow Texas A&M 60 10 0 0
11 Lou Valli Stanford 60 10 0 0
11 Del Shofner Baylor 60 10 0 0
15 Jim Taylor LSU 59 8 8 1
16 Bobby Mulgado Arizona State 56 8 8 0
16 Buford Waterhouse Drake 56 9 2 0
16 Paul Hornung Notre Dame 56 7 14 0
19 Bobby Jordan VMI 55 8 7 0
20 Dennis McGill Yale 54 9 0 0
20 Charlie McCue Kansas 54 9 0 0

[25]

Small college

Rank Player Team Pts TD PAT FG
1 Larry Houdek Kansas Wesleyan 114 19 0 0
2 John Steffen River Falls State 111 14 27 0
3 Al Frazier Florida A&M 109 15 19 0
4 Tom Schwalbach Northern Michigan 103 14 19 0
5 George Kelleher Trinity (CT) 99 14 15 0
5 Bob "Spinner" Martin Bates 99 15 9 0
7 Larson Carthage 97 15 7 0
8 Villa Allegheny 96 16 0 0
8 Bullard Lenoir-Rhyne 96 16 0 0
8 Garber Capital 96 points 16 0 0

[25]

Team

[edit]

Total offense

[edit]

The following teams were the leaders in total offense during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Team Games
played
Total
plays
Yards
gained
Yards
per game
1 Oklahoma 10 775 4817 481.7
2 Hardin-Simmons 10 786 3912 391.2
3 Auburn 10 670 3749 374.9
4 Pacific 10 684 3645 364.5
5 Arizona State 10 625 3609 360.9
6 Michigan State 9 585 3231 359.0
7 TCU 10 718 3563 356.3
8 Virginia Tech 10 726 3559 355.9
9 Yale 9 574 3199 355.4
10 Denver 10 676 3505 350.5

[26]

Small college

Rank Team Games
played
Total
plays
Yards
gained
Yards
per game
1 Florida A&M 8 418 3800 475.0
2 Tufts 7 450 3083 440.4
3 Tennessee A&I 9 564 3803 422.6
4 Bradley 10 642 4110 411.0
5 College of Emporia 9 576 3687 409.7
6 Grambling 9 505 3618 402.0
7 Alfred 7 407 2800 400.0
8 Texas Southern 10 645 3959 395.9
9 Montana State 9 624 3488 387.6
10 Bowling Green 9 615 3434 381.6

[27]

Rushing offense

[edit]

The following teams were the leaders in rushing offense during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 Oklahoma 391.0
2 VPI 283.5
3 Auburn 276.0
3 Army 276.0
5 Ohio State 274.2
6 USC 269.5
7 Washington 268.8
8 Yale 264.7
9 Texas A&M 263.8
10 Michigan State 256.9

[26]

Small college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 Tufts 359.9
2 Florida A&M 347.9
3 Montana State 339.1
4 College of Emporia 322.4
5 West Texas State 319.9
6 Bowling Green 318.3
7 Denison 315.4
8 Texas Southern 298.6
9 Colorado Western 289.1
10 Lewis and Clark 283.8

[27]

Passing offense

[edit]

The following teams were the leaders in passing offense during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 Washington State 206.8
2 Stanford 204.4
3 Pacific 188.9
4 San Jose State 188.1
5 Hardin-Simmons 156.9
6 Rice 137.3
7 Navy 133.0
8 Texas 130.3
9 Colgate 129.0
10 BYU 128.6

[26]

Small college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 Pennsylvania Military 207.7
2 Bradley 196.4
3 St. Ambrose 183.0
4 Brandeis 169.2
5 Loras 153.3
6 Buffalo 142.1
7 Tennessee A&I 141.7
8 Hamilton 138.7
9 Occidental 137.6
10 New Haven State 136.9

[27]

Total defense

[edit]

The following teams were the leaders in total defense during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Team Games
played
Total
plays
Yards
gained
Yards
per game
1 Miami (FL) 10 590 1894 189.4
2 Oklahoma 10 634 1938 193.8
3 Ole Miss 10 572 1955 195.5
4 South Carolina 10 558 1998 199.8
5 Georgia Tech 10 537 2003 200.3
6 Navy 9 543 1840 204.4
7 Auburn 10 540 2083 208.3
8 Texas A&M 10 601 2088 208.8
9 Penn State 9 534 1903 211.4
10 Pittsburgh 10 591 2154 215.4

[26]

Small college

Rank Team Games
played
Total
plays
Yards
gained
Yards
per game
1 Tennessee A&I 9 463 1070 118.9
2 Hillsdale 9 467 1128 125.3
3 Westminster 8 441 1105 138.1
4 Capital 8 424 1203 150.4
5 Moravian 8 394 1208 151.0
6 Allen 9 378 1367 151.9
7 Florida A&M 8 405 1259 157.4
8 Juniata 7 378 1120 160.0
9 Montana State 9 492 1506 167.3
10 South Carolina State 9 465 1531 170.1

[28]

Rushing defense

[edit]

The following teams were the leaders in rushing defense during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 Miami (FL) 106.9
2 Navy 113.1
3 Holy Cross 123.3
4 Georgia Tech 128.4
5 Boston College 130.1
6 Texas A&M 130.2
7 West Virginia 136.9
8 Oklahoma 138.3
9 Iowa 142.8
10 Ole Miss 144.9

[26]

Small college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 Hillsdale 51.1
2 Tennessee A&I 52.9
3 New Haven State 56.6
4 Gettysburg 73.7
5 Mississippi Southern 75.1
6 Florida A&M 79.3
7 Juniata 80.6
8 Capital 82.0
9 Allen 87.1
10 Moravian 88.4

[27]

Passing defense

[edit]

The following teams were the leaders in passing defense during the 1956 season:

Major college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 Villanova 43.8
2 Dartmouth 45.3
3 South Carolina 47.6
4 Penn State 48.2
5 TCU 49.7
5 Wake Forest 49.7
7 Ole Miss 50.6
8 Clemson 52.6
9 Auburn 52.8
10 NC State 53.0

[26]

Small college

Rank Team Yards
per game
1 West Virginia Tech 29.1
2 Mankato State 30.3
3 Virginia Union 36.3
4 Concordia 41.8
5 Davidson 42.7
6 North Dakota 43.0
7 Colorado State 43.6
8 Akron 45.6
9 Idaho State 47.1
10 Westminster 47.6

[27]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 17, 2012. Retrieved January 18, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ Sports Illustrated, October 15, 1956, p70
  3. ^ "Football:Fourth Week, Sports Illustrated, October 15, 1956, p14
  4. ^ "In the Midwest: Illinois Hurdles Over State," Sports Illustrated, Nov. 5, 2006, p16
  5. ^ "Sooners Scared By Buffs, Rally For 27–19 Win," Oakland Tribune, Nov. 4, 1956, p53
  6. ^ "A Day of Decision", Sports Illustrated, Nov. 19, 1956, p28
  7. ^ "Ban Fails To Lift For Aggie Bowl Bid," Amarillo Globe-Times, Nov. 14, 1956, p19
  8. ^ "1956 Atlantic Coast Conference Year Summary". sports-reference.com. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  9. ^ "Courier Rates Top Football Teams". The Pittsburgh Courier. December 15, 1956. p. 27 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Negro Teams Clash For Title," The Bee (Danville, VA), Nov. 28, 1956, pD-3
  11. ^ "Tennessee State Tigers Edge Rattlers 41-39 in Orange Blossom Classic," Fort Pierce News-Tribune, Dec. 9, 1956, p9-C
  12. ^ "Sooners Repeat As Nation's Best". The Austin Statesman. December 4, 1956. p. A16 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Aggies Rated 5th in Nation". The Austin Statesman. December 4, 1956. p. A16 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Hornung gains award as best player of '56". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. December 5, 1956. p. 2, sec. 4.
  15. ^ "Paul Hornung". Heisman Trophy. 1956. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  16. ^ Touchdowns-for-which-responsible is player's total of touchdowns scored and touchdown passes thrown
  17. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 61.
  18. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 69.
  19. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 61.
  20. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 70.
  21. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 61.
  22. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 69.
  23. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 63.
  24. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 70.
  25. ^ a b Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 66.
  26. ^ a b c d e f Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 65.
  27. ^ a b c d e Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 71.
  28. ^ Official Collegiate Football Record Book. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 1957. p. 71.