by our College Data Analytics Team
Choosing a college as a student athlete means weighing both the classroom and the competition. This list ranks 594 programs for Men’s Football by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To arm you with the information you need, College Factual scores each program on a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and aid per athlete from the EADA survey), and overall school quality, drawing on NCAA, U.S. Department of Education EADA, and IPEDS data. Learn more about our ranking methodology.
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Here are the top-ranked colleges for student athletes: No school ranked higher than Northwestern University this year for Men's Football. This private not-for-profit school is set in Evanston, IL. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 993, with a Graduation Success Rate of 99%. About 97% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $785,207, against $347,723 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $53,919. University of Notre Dame ranked #2 among the best colleges for Men's Football. This private not-for-profit school is set in Notre Dame, IN. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 994, and a 98% Graduation Success Rate. About 81% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $1,578,415 per participant, compared with $752,063 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $34,391 per athlete. Wake Forest University ranked #3 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Located in Winston-Salem, NC, Wake Forest University is a private not-for-profit institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 998, with a Graduation Success Rate of 99%. Its federal graduation rate is 71%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $303,076, compared with $303,076 spent per athlete. The school awards about $38,933 in athletic aid per athlete. Duke University is one of the top schools for Men's Football, at #4. This private not-for-profit school is set in Durham, NC. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 990, with a Graduation Success Rate of 94%. About 87% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $556,665, compared with $391,434 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $34,321 per athlete.1
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Clemson University earned the #5 place for student athletes. Clemson University is a public school based in Clemson, SC. The team's NCAA APR score is 996, with a Graduation Success Rate of 98%. The federal graduation rate stands at 80%. Team revenue averages $634,325 per participant, compared with $592,239 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $21,730.5
Boston College landed the #6 spot this year. Based in Chestnut Hill, MA, Boston College is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 990, with a Graduation Success Rate of 96%. The federal graduation rate stands at 80%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $321,157, against $278,546 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $29,391 per athlete. University of Wisconsin-Madison came in at #7 in this year's ranking. Located in Madison, WI, University of Wisconsin-Madison is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 987, and a 94% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 83%. Team revenue averages $920,652 per participant, compared with $335,274 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $21,586. Vanderbilt University placed #8 among the best colleges for Men's Football. This private not-for-profit school is set in Nashville, TN. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 985, with a Graduation Success Rate of 90%. Its federal graduation rate is 82%. The program generates about $380,384 in revenue per athlete, against $380,384 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $42,235. Stanford University came in at #9 in this year's ranking. Located in Stanford, CA, Stanford University is a private not-for-profit institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 986, with a Graduation Success Rate of 90%. The federal graduation rate stands at 83%. Team revenue averages $327,200 per participant, with expenses of about $327,200 per participant. The school awards about $42,012 in athletic aid per athlete.6
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University of Michigan-Ann Arbor placed #10 among the best colleges for Men's Football. This public school is set in Ann Arbor, MI. The team's NCAA APR score is 996, and a 89% Graduation Success Rate. About 60% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $1,261,148 per participant, with expenses of about $443,620 per participant. The school awards about $28,650 in athletic aid per athlete.10
Ohio State University-Main Campus ranked #11 on our 2026 list for Men's Football. This public school is set in Columbus, OH. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, alongside a GSR of 89%. About 60% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $1,315,982 in revenue per athlete, against $757,044 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $27,151 per athlete. Fordham University came in at #12 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Bronx, NY. The team's NCAA APR score is 992, alongside a GSR of 95%. The federal graduation rate stands at 81%. The program generates about $90,137 in revenue per athlete, against $90,137 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $32,443. Villanova University came in at #13 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Villanova, PA. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 986, alongside a GSR of 95%. About 87% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $91,669 in revenue per athlete, against $91,669 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $25,480 per athlete. Colgate University ranked #14 on our 2026 list for Men's Football. Located in Hamilton, NY, Colgate University is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 989, alongside a GSR of 96%. About 91% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $86,118 in revenue per athlete, compared with $86,118 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $22,658.11
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The University of Alabama did well this year, earning the #15 position. The University of Alabama is a public school based in Tuscaloosa, AL. The University of Alabama records an NCAA APR of 1000, alongside a GSR of 98%. The federal graduation rate stands at 58%. The program generates about $1,108,524 in revenue per athlete, compared with $617,441 spent per athlete. The school awards about $20,760 in athletic aid per athlete.15
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus came in at #16 in this year's ranking. Located in Cincinnati, OH, University of Cincinnati-Main Campus is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 992, alongside a GSR of 98%. The federal graduation rate stands at 69%. Team revenue averages $253,577 per participant, with expenses of about $253,577 per participant. The school awards about $20,882 in athletic aid per athlete. University of Virginia-Main Campus placed #17 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Based in Charlottesville, VA, University of Virginia-Main Campus is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 976, alongside a GSR of 95%. About 83% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $405,055, with expenses of about $264,660 per participant. Athletic aid averages $26,976 per athlete. University of Minnesota-Twin Cities landed the #18 spot this year. Based in Minneapolis, MN, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 995, with a Graduation Success Rate of 87%. About 59% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $869,454 in revenue per athlete, against $388,485 in expenses. The school awards about $27,174 in athletic aid per athlete. Auburn University placed #19 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Based in Auburn, AL, Auburn University is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 992, with a Graduation Success Rate of 89%. About 61% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $1,003,378 per participant, against $485,326 in expenses. The school awards about $28,233 in athletic aid per athlete.16
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Iowa State University landed the #20 spot this year. Iowa State University is a public school based in Ames, IA. Iowa State University records an NCAA APR of 992, and a 95% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 69%. Team revenue averages $449,959 per participant, with expenses of about $239,536 per participant. The school awards about $16,185 in athletic aid per athlete.20
Rice University did well this year, earning the #21 position. Rice University is a private not-for-profit school based in Houston, TX. Rice University records an NCAA APR of 981, and a 89% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 80%. Team revenue averages $159,279 per participant, compared with $159,279 spent per athlete. The school awards about $41,166 in athletic aid per athlete. Elon University placed #22 among the best colleges for Men's Football. This private not-for-profit school is set in Elon, NC. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 993, and a 91% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 88%. The program generates about $70,775 in revenue per athlete, against $70,775 in expenses. The school awards about $25,795 in athletic aid per athlete. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill did well this year, earning the #23 position. Based in Chapel Hill, NC, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public institution. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill records an NCAA APR of 986, with a Graduation Success Rate of 89%. About 76% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $514,936 in revenue per athlete, compared with $399,559 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $17,771. University of Washington-Seattle Campus placed #24 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Located in Seattle, WA, University of Washington-Seattle Campus is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 977, and a 93% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 68%. The program generates about $1,061,570 in revenue per athlete, against $604,577 in expenses. The school awards about $26,539 in athletic aid per athlete. Johns Hopkins University ranked #25 on our 2026 list for Men's Football. Johns Hopkins University is a private not-for-profit school based in Baltimore, MD. The program generates about $11,704 in revenue per athlete, compared with $11,250 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $2,612.21
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These programs also stood out among the best this year:26
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Click any college name below to learn more:Rank College Location 51 Colby College Waterville, ME 52 Washington University in St Louis St. Louis, MO 53 Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 54 College of the Holy Cross Worcester, MA 55 University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, SC 56 University of Louisville Louisville, KY 57 North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC 58 Davidson College Davidson, NC 59 Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ 60 Williams College Williamstown, MA 61 Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA 62 Middlebury College Middlebury, VT 63 Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA 64 University of Toledo Toledo, OH 65 Temple University Philadelphia, PA
These colleges also performed well in our ranking:Rank College Location 91 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH 92 Bryant University Smithfield, RI 93 Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN 94 Bentley University Waltham, MA 95 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA 96 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY 97 Macalester College Saint Paul, MN 98 Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ 99 North Dakota State University-Main Campus Fargo, ND 100 University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln, NE 101 Wofford College Spartanburg, SC 102 Union College Schenectady, NY 103 Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus University Park, PA 104 University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO 105 University of Mississippi University, MS
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 106 | Rhodes College | Memphis, TN |
| 107 | University of Oregon | Eugene, OR |
| 108 | University of California-Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA |
| 109 | Syracuse University | Syracuse, NY |
| 110 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | Knoxville, TN |
| 111 | Samford University | Birmingham, AL |
| 112 | Gettysburg College | Gettysburg, PA |
| 113 | University of Dayton | Dayton, OH |
| 114 | The College of New Jersey | Ewing, NJ |
| 115 | Oberlin College | Oberlin, OH |
| 116 | University of Rhode Island | Kingston, RI |
| 117 | Columbia University in the City of New York | New York, NY |
| 118 | Harvard University | Cambridge, MA |
| 119 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | Durham, NH |
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This ranking is produced by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology weighs a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and athletic aid from the federal EADA survey), and overall school quality. The current methodology measures academic-athletic quality and does not include team win/loss performance.
References
See our data sources and methodologies.