| 1957 college football season | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preseason AP No. 1 | Oklahoma[1] | |
| Regular season | September 20 – November 30, 1957 | |
| Number of bowls | 6 | |
| Bowl games | December 28, 1957 – January 1, 1958 | |
| Champion(s) | Auburn (AP) Ohio State (Coaches, FWAA) | |
| Heisman | John David Crow (halfback, Texas A&M) | |
| ||
The 1957 college football season was the 89th season of intercollegiate football in the United States. It concluded with two teams having claim to the major college national championship:
- Auburn 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, College Football Researchers Association, Helms Athletic Foundation, National Championship Foundation, Poling System, Sagarin Ratings, and Williamson System.[2] Auburn was ineligible for a bowl game, however, having been placed on probation by the Southeastern Conference, after having paid two high school players $500 apiece.[3]
- Ohio State compiled an 8–1 regular season record and was ranked No. 1 in the final UPI coaches poll.[4] They would go on to defeat Oregon in the Rose Bowl, and after the bowls were given the Grantland Rice Award representative of the national championship by the Football Writers Association of America.[5]
Other notable teams from the 1957 season include: Florida A&M (9–0, black college national champion); Pittsburg State (11–0, NAIA national champion); Arizona State (10–0, top-ranked offense outscored opponents, 397 to 66); and Middle Tennesse (10–0, Ohio Valley champion).
John David Crow of Texas A&M won the Heisman Trophy, and Bob Reifsnyder of Navy won the Maxwell Award. The statistical leaders among the major college teams included Washington State quarterback Bob Newman with 1,444 yards of total offense, Utah quarterback Lee Grosscup with 1,398 passing yards, and Arizona State halfback Leon Burton with 1,126 rushing yards and 96 points scored.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on August 16, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ 2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2018. pp. 113, 120. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
- ^ "Auburn Barred From Bowl Games, Placed on Probation by S.E.C.," Charleston Gazette, February 14, 1956, p13
- ^ "Auburn or Ohio State-Which Is Grid Champ?", Montana Standard (Butte, MT), December 3, 1957, p11
- ^ Written at New York City. "Ohio State Is Winner Of Grantland Rice Award". The Buffalo News. Buffalo. International News Service. January 4, 1958. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
The Buckeyes received two of the five first-place votes in the balloting conducted by Look Magazine. In the voting by a five-man panel, Ohio State got eight points to five apiece for Auburn, Navy, and Michigan State.