1956 NCAA College Division football season

1956 Central Intercollegiate Conference football standings
	$ – Conference champion;

1956 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings
	No champion named for the 1956 season;

1956 NCAA College Division football season
Regular season	September 22 – December 1, 1956
Number of bowls	3
Bowl games	December 1, 1956 – January 1, 1957
Champion(s)	Tennessee State (black)
	College Division football seasons
	College Division football seasons

The 1956 NCAA College Division football season saw the NCAA split member schools into two divisions: larger schools were part of the University Division, later known as NCAA Division I, and smaller schools were placed in the College Division, later split into NCAA Division II and NCAA Division III.

Champions

Black college championship

The Tennessee State Tigers (9–0) and the Florida A&M Rattlers (8–0) were considered to be the No. 1 and No. 2 teams "among the nation's Negro grid powers".[1] The teams from the two historically black universities played at the Orange Bowl stadium in Miami, which hosted the Orange Blossom Classic as well as the New Year's Day, historically white universities, Orange Bowl game. A crowd of 41,808 watched Tennessee State win 41–39.[2]

Conference champions

Conference	Champion(s)	Record
California Collegiate Athletic Association	none
Far Western Conference	Humboldt State Northern Branch San Francisco State	4–1 4–1 4–1
Mid-American Conference	Bowling Green	5–0–1
Ohio Valley Conference	Middle Tennessee State	5–0

Conference standings

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 State	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	–	2	–	0
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 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	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 Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Central (IA) $	7	–	1	–	0	7	–	1	–	0
Simpson	5	–	2	–	1	5	–	2	–	1
Luther	5	–	2	–	1	5	–	3	–	1
Iowa Wesleyan	5	–	3	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Buena Vista	4	–	4	–	0	4	–	4	–	1
Dubuque	3	–	3	–	2	3	–	3	–	2
Parsons	3	–	5	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
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	–	0
East Texas State	1	–	5	–	0	2	–	8	–	0
Sul Ross	0	–	6	–	0	1	–	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-American Conference football standings
	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Bowling Green $	5	–	0	–	1	8	–	0	–	1
Miami	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 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
St. Thomas (MN) $	7	–	0	–	0	7	–	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 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 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 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	2	–	7	–	0
Arkansas AM&N	0	–	5	–	1	2	–	6	–	1
Texas College	0	–	5	–	1	2	–	6	–	1

+ – 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
Northern Michigan		–		7	–	0	–	1
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
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
Baldwin–Wallace		–		4	–	5	–	0
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

Postseason

Burley Bowl

The Memphis State Tigers faced off against the East Tennessee State Buccaneers in the Burley Bowl in Johnson City, Tennessee.

Refrigerator Bowl

The Refrigerator Bowl in Evansville, Indiana featured the Ohio Valley Conference champion Middle Tennessee State against the undefeated Lone Star Conference champion Sam Houston State.

Tangerine Bowl

The 1957 Tangerine Bowl featured College Division Independent Mississippi Southern (later known as Southern Miss) against the West Texas State Buffaloes from the University-division Border Conference.

Undefeated teams

Other schools that finished their seasons unbeaten and untied were Lenoir Rhyne College, New Haven Teachers College, Hillsdale College, Central Michigan University, Kearney State College, Redlands College, Westminster College (Pennsylvania), St. Thomas (Minn.) College, Alfred University and Milton College (Wisconsin).[3]

References

"Negro Teams Clash For Title," The Bee (Danville, VA), Nov. 28, 1956, pD-3
"Tennessee State Tigers Edge Rattlers 41-39 in Orange Blossom Classic," Fort Pierce News-Tribune, Dec. 9, 1956, p9-C
"17 College Teams Still Unbeaten, Untied", UP report, Las Vegas Daily Optic, Nov. 26, 1956, p3

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[1] "Negro Teams Clash For Title," The Bee (Danville, VA), Nov. 28, 1956, pD-3

[2] "Tennessee State Tigers Edge Rattlers 41-39 in Orange Blossom Classic," Fort Pierce News-Tribune, Dec. 9, 1956, p9-C

[3] "17 College Teams Still Unbeaten, Untied", UP report, Las Vegas Daily Optic, Nov. 26, 1956, p3

NCAA football seasons
Pre-divisional	1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955
NCAA University Division	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
NCAA Division I	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977
NCAA Division I-A/FBS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
NCAA Division I-AA/FCS	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020–21 2021
NCAA College Division	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
NCAA Division II	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
NCAA Division III	1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021