1956 NCAA College Division football season

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.

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 A&I (black)
← 1955 · College Division football seasons · 1957 →

Champions

Black college championship

The Tennessee A&I (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 A&I 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 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 participant
1956 Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e 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 Wisconsin State College Conference football standings v t e 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 v t e 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 v t e Conf Overall Team W   L   T W   L   T Alfred   –   8 – 0 – 0 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 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

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

Team	Record	Notes
1956 Alfred Saxons football team	7–0	Consecutive perfect seasons 1955-1956
1956 Central Michigan Chippewas football team	9–0	IIAC champion
1956 Kearney State Antelopes football team	9–0	NCC champion
1956 St. Thomas Tommies football team	8–0	MIAC champion
1956 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team	10–0	Lone Star and Refrigerator Bowl champion
1956 Tennessee A&I Tigers football team	10–0	Black college national champion

Other schools that finished their seasons unbeaten and untied were Lenoir Rhyne College, New Haven Teachers College, Hillsdale College, Redlands College, Westminster College (Pennsylvania), and Milton College (Wisconsin).^[3]

See also

• 1956 NCAA University Division football season
• 1956 NAIA football season

References

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