1970 NCAA University Division football rankings
Two human polls comprised the 1970 National Collegiate Athletic Association football rankings. Unlike most sports, college football's governing body, the NCAA, does not bestow a national championship, 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 and the Coaches' Poll.Legend
AP Poll
The final UPI Coaches Poll was released prior to the bowl games, in early December.
Two coaches on the 35-member board did not submit votes.
Texas received 25 of the 33 first place votes; Ohio State received six and Nebraska two.
| Ranking | Team | Conference | Bowl |
| 1 | Texas | Southwest | Lost Cotton, 11–24 |
| 2 | Ohio State | Big Ten | Lost Rose, 17–27 |
| 3 | Nebraska | Big Eight | Won Orange, 17–12 |
| 4 | Tennessee | SEC | Won Sugar, 34–13 |
| 5 | Notre Dame | Independent | Won Cotton, 24–11 |
| 6 | LSU | SEC | Lost Orange, 12–17 |
| 7 | Michigan | Big Ten | none |
| 8 | Arizona State | WAC | Won Peach, 48–26 |
| 9 | Auburn | SEC | Won Gator, 35–28 |
| 10 | Stanford | Pac-8 | Won Rose, 27–17 |
| 11 | Air Force | Independent | Lost Sugar, 13–34 |
| 12 | Arkansas | Southwest | none |
| 13 | Houston | Independent | none |
| 14 | Dartmouth | Ivy League | none |
| 15 | Oklahoma | Big Eight | Tied Bluebonnet, 24–24 |
| 16 | Colorado | Big Eight | Lost Liberty, 3–17 |
| 17 | Georgia Tech | Independent | Won Sun, 17–9 |
| 17 | Toledo | MAC | Won Tangerine, 40–12 |
| 19 | Penn State | Independent | none |
| 19 | USC | Pac-8 | none |
Source:
