FINAL 2012 polls
Associated Press poll
| No., team | record | points | prv. |
| 1. Alabama (59) | 13-1 | 1,475 | 2 |
| 2. Oregon | 12-1 | 1,358 | 5 |
| 3. Ohio State | 12-0 | 1,302 | 3 |
| 4. Notre Dame | 12-1 | 1,288 | 1 |
| 5. Georgia | 12-2 | 1,230 | 6 |
| 5. Texas A&M | 11-2 | 1,230 | 10 |
| 7. Stanford | 12-2 | 1,169 | 8 |
| 8. South Carolina | 11-2 | 1,038 | 11 |
| 9. Florida | 11-2 | 933 | 4 |
| 10. Florida State | 12-2 | 922 | 13 |
| 11. Clemson | 11-2 | 889 | 14 |
| 12. Kansas State | 11-2 | 871 | 7 |
| 13. Louisville | 11-2 | 781 | 22 |
| 14. LSU | 10-3 | 756 | 9 |
| 15. Oklahoma | 10-3 | 615 | 12 |
| 16. Utah State | 11-2 | 456 | 18 |
| 17. Northwestern | 10-3 | 443 | 21 |
| 18. Boise State | 11-2 | 419 | 20 |
| 19. Texas | 9-4 | 358 | NR |
| 20. Oregon State | 9-4 | 303 | 15 |
| 21. San Jose State | 11-2 | 243 | 24 |
| 22. Northern Illinois | 12-2 | 227 | 16 |
| 23. Vanderbilt | 9-4 | 180 | NR |
| 24. Michigan | 8-5 | 147 | 19 |
| 25. Nebraska | 10-4 | 119 | 23 |
Others receiving votes: Baylor 95, Penn St. 90, Cincinnati 78, Oklahoma St. 42, Tulsa 34, UCLA 31, Arkansas St. 28, TCU 9, UCF 9, Wisconsin 6, N. Dakota St. 1.
USA Today coaches poll
| No., team | record | points | prv. |
| 1. Alabama (56) | 13-1 | 1,400 | 2 |
| 2. Oregon | 12-1 | 1,322 | 3 |
| 3. Notre Dame | 12-1 | 1,253 | 1 |
| 4. Georgia | 12-2 | 1,213 | 5 |
| 5. Texas A&M | 11-2 | 1,171 | 9 |
| 6. Stanford | 12-2 | 1,167 | 8 |
| 7. South Carolina | 11-2 | 1,064 | 10 |
| 8. Florida State | 12-2 | 942 | 12 |
| 9. Clemson | 11-2 | 916 | 13 |
| 10. Florida | 11-2 | 886 | 4 |
| 11. Kansas State | 11-2 | 841 | 6 |
| 12. LSU | 10-3 | 775 | 7 |
| 13. Louisville | 11-2 | 772 | 18 |
| 14. Boise State | 11-2 | 633 | 15 |
| 15. Oklahoma | 10-3 | 600 | 11 |
| 16. Northwestern | 10-3 | 580 | 17 |
| 17. Utah State | 11-2 | 444 | 20 |
| 18. Texas | 9-4 | 398 | 25 |
| 19. Oregon State | 9-4 | 366 | 14 |
| 20. Vanderbilt | 9-4 | 248 | NR |
| 21. San Jose State | 11-2 | 244 | 24 |
| 22. Cincinnati | 10-3 | 186 | NR |
| 23. Nebraska | 10-4 | 175 | 21 |
| 24. Northern Illinois | 12-2 | 156 | 16 |
| 25. Tulsa | 11-3 | 110 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Michigan 101; UCLA 75; Baylor 52; Oklahoma State 36; Wisconsin 18; Central Florida 15; Arkansas State 13; Arizona State 10; Rutgers 9; Kent State 5; Louisiana Tech 2; Arizona 1; Ohio 1.
2012 Polls, completed before BOWLs
Bowl Championship Series standings
| No., team | points | prv. |
| 1. Notre Dame | .9978 | 1 |
| 2. Alabama | .9441 | 2 |
| 3. Florida | .8984 | 4 |
| 4. Oregon | .8621 | 5 |
| 5. Kansas State | .8226 | 6 |
| 6. Stanford | .7683 | 8 |
| 7. Georgia | .7583 | 3 |
| 8. LSU | .7511 | 7 |
| 9. Texas A&M | .6756 | 9 |
| 10. South Carolina | .6604 | 10 |
| 11. Oklahoma | .6502 | 11 |
| 12. Florida State | .5047 | 13 |
| 13. Oregon State | .4716 | 15 |
| 14. Clemson | .4693 | 14 |
| 15. Northern Illinois | .3276 | 21 |
| 16. Nebraska | .3264 | 12 |
| 17. UCLA | .2872 | 16 |
| 18. Michigan | .2537 | 19 |
| 19. Boise State | .2513 | 20 |
| 20. Northwestern | .2327 | 22 |
| 21. Louisville | .1808 | NR |
| 22. Utah State | .1787 | 24 |
| 23. Texas | .1519 | 18 |
| 24. San Jose State | .1346 | 25 |
| 25. Kent State | .0772 | 17 |
Harris Interactive poll
| No., team | record | points | prv. |
| 1. Notre Dame (109) | 12-0 | 2869 | 1 |
| 2. Alabama (6) | 11-1 | 2740 | 2 |
| 3. Georgia | 11-1 | 2599 | 3 |
| 4. Oregon | 11-1 | 2507 | 4 |
| 5. Florida | 11-1 | 2435 | 5 |
| 6. Kansas State | 10-1 | 2229 | 7 |
| 7. LSU | 10-2 | 2142 | 8 |
| 8. Stanford | 10-2 | 2059 | 11 |
| 9. Texas A&M | 10-2 | 2038 | 10 |
| 10. South Carolina | 10-2 | 1862 | 12 |
| 11. Oklahoma | 9-2 | 1706 | 13 |
| 12. Florida State | 10-2 | 1614 | 6 |
| 13. Nebraska | 10-2 | 1493 | 14 |
| 14. Clemson | 10-2 | 1446 | 9 |
| 15. Oregon State | 8-3 | 975 | 15 |
| 16. UCLA | 9-3 | 919 | 16 |
| 17. Boise State | 9-2 | 817 | 21 |
| 18. Kent State | 11-1 | 705 | 25 |
| 19. Northern Illinois | 11-1 | 619 | 24 |
| 20. Texas | 8-3 | 564 | 17 |
| 21. Northwestern | 9-3 | 479 | NR |
| 22. Utah State | 10-2 | 438 | NR |
| 23. Michigan | 8-4 | 434 | 20 |
| 24. Louisville | 9-2 | 394 | 18 |
| 25. Oklahoma State | 7-4 | 392 | 22 |
Other teams receiving votes: Rutgers 302, Texas Christian 134, San Jose State 118, Vanderbilt 67, Southern Cal 57, San Diego State 39, Fresno State 36, Baylor 31, Mississippi State 26, Louisiana Tech 19, Cincinnati 12, Arizona State 11, Syracuse 10, Tulsa 10, Central Florida 9, Arizona 6, Toledo 6, East Carolina 4, Arkansas State 1, Louisiana-Monroe 1, Washington 1.
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Final 2011 regular-season polls
BCS standings
Click to enlarge.
USA Today coaches poll
| 1. LSU (59) | 13-0 | 1,475 | 1 |
| 2. Alabama | 11-1 | 1,399 | 2 |
| 3. Oklahoma State | 11-1 | 1,367 | 5 |
| 4. Stanford | 11-1 | 1,286 | 4 |
| 5. Oregon | 11-2 | 1,232 | 7 |
| 6. Boise State | 11-1 | 1,128 | 8 |
| 7. Arkansas | 10-2 | 1,112 | 10 |
| 8. Wisconsin | 11-2 | 1,085 | 12 |
| 9. South Carolina | 10-2 | 971 | 13 |
| 10. Kansas State | 10-2 | 878 | 15 |
| 11. Virginia Tech | 11-2 | 835 | 3 |
| 12. Michigan | 10-2 | 789 | 16 |
| 13. Michigan State | 10-3 | 735 | 9 |
| 14. Clemson | 10-3 | 657 | 21 |
| 15. TCU | 10-2 | 631 | 17 |
| 16. Baylor | 9-3 | 599 | 18 |
| 17. Houston | 12-1 | 542 | 6 |
| 18. Georgia | 10-3 | 538 | 14 |
| 19. Oklahoma | 9-3 | 437 | 11 |
| 20. Nebraska | 9-3 | 402 | 19 |
| 21. Southern Mississippi | 11-2 | 366 | 23 |
| 22. West Virginia | 9-3 | 278 | 20 |
| 23. Penn State | 9-3 | 189 | 22 |
| 24. Cincinnati | 9-3 | 94 | 25 |
| 25. Florida State | 8-4 | 68 | 24 |
Others receiving votes: Brigham Young 20; Northern Illinois 14; Missouri 11; Georgia Tech 10; Arkansas State 9; Notre Dame 9; Virginia 5; Louisiana Tech 2; Rutgers 1; Texas 1.
Harris Interactive poll
| 1. LSU (115) | 13-0 | 2,875 | 1 |
| 2. Alabama | 11-1 | 2,723 | 2 |
| 3. Oklahoma State | 11-1 | 2,654 | 5 |
| 4. Stanford | 11-1 | 2,504 | 3 |
| 5. Oregon | 11-2 | 2,372 | 7 |
| 6. Boise State | 11-1 | 2,236 | 8 |
| 7. Arkansas | 10-2 | 2,163 | 9 |
| 8. Wisconsin | 11-2 | 2,060 | 13 |
| 9. South Carolina | 10-2 | 1,833 | 14 |
| 10. Kansas State | 10-2 | 1,733 | 15 |
| 11. Virginia Tech | 11-2 | 1,498 | 4 |
| 12. Michigan | 10-2 | 1,447 | 16 |
| 13. Michigan State | 10-3 | 1,428 | 11 |
| 14. Clemson | 10-3 | 1,351 | 20 |
| 15. TCU | 10-2 | 1,245 | 17 |
| 16. Baylor | 9-3 | 1,228 | 18 |
| 17. Houston | 12-1 | 1,132 | 6 |
| 18. Georgia | 10-3 | 1,095 | 12 |
| 19. Oklahoma | 9-3 | 933 | 10 |
| 20. Nebraska | 9-3 | 717 | 19 |
| 21. Southern Miss | 11-2 | 711 | 23 |
| 22. West Virginia | 9-3 | 522 | 21 |
| 23. Penn State | 9-3 | 383 | 22 |
| 24. Cincinnati | 9-3 | 172 | NR |
| 25. Florida State | 8-4 | 130 | 24 |
Other teams receiving votes: BYU 45; Notre Dame 43; Georgia Tech 35; Arkansas State 22; Northern Illinois 22; Auburn 15; Virginia 13; Missouri 12; Louisiana Tech 6; Louisville 6; Texas 6; Rutgers 4; Tulsa 1.
Associated Press poll (not part of BCS)
| 1. LSU (60) | 13-0 | 1,500 | 1 |
| 2. Alabama | 11-1 | 1,418 | 2 |
| 3. Oklahoma State | 11-1 | 1,400 | 3 |
| 4. Stanford | 11-1 | 1,283 | 4 |
| 5. Southern California | 10-2 | 1,179 | 9 |
| 6. Oregon | 11-2 | 1,170 | 8 |
| 7. Arkansas | 10-2 | 1,148 | 6 |
| 8. Boise State | 11-1 | 1,107 | 9 |
| 9. Wisconsin | 11-2 | 1,038 | 15 |
| 10. South Carolina | 10-2 | 946 | 14 |
| 11. Kansas State | 10-2 | 829 | 16 |
| 12. Michigan State | 10-3 | 733 | 11 |
| 13. Michigan | 10-2 | 707 | 17 |
| 14. Clemson | 10-3 | 663 | 21 |
| 15. Baylor | 9-3 | 656 | 19 |
| 16. Texas Christian | 10-2 | 632 | 18 |
| 17. Virginia Tech | 11-2 | 591 | 5 |
| 18. Georgia | 10-3 | 566 | 12 |
| 19. Oklahoma | 9-3 | 386 | 13 |
| 20. Houston | 12-1 | 370 | 7 |
| 21. Nebraska | 9-3 | 363 | 20 |
| 22. Southern Mississippi | 11-2 | 336 | 24 |
| 23. West Virginia | 9-3 | 199 | 22 |
| 24. Penn State | 9-3 | 129 | 23 |
| 25. Florida State | 8-4 | 49 | 25 |
Others receiving votes: Notre Dame 23, Cincinnati 22, Arkansas St. 18, Brigham Young 12, Georgia Tech 7, Northern Illinois 7, Missouri 5, Virginia 5, Tulsa 2, Louisville 1.
