by our College Data Analytics Team
Choosing a college as a student athlete means weighing both the classroom and the competition. Our ranking highlights 7 colleges for Men’s Football by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To help you decide, 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:
University of Washington-Seattle Campus tops our 2026 ranking of the best colleges for Men's Football. Based in Seattle, WA, University of Washington-Seattle Campus is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 977, and a 93% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 68%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $1,061,570, with expenses of about $604,577 per participant. Athletic aid averages $26,539 per athlete.
Pacific Lutheran University came in at #2 on this year's ranking for Men's Football. Based in Tacoma, WA, Pacific Lutheran University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $12,792 in revenue per athlete, against $9,223 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Washington State University came in at #3 on this year's ranking for Men's Football. Based in Pullman, WA, Washington State University is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 964, with a Graduation Success Rate of 80%. Its federal graduation rate is 47%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $313,157, with expenses of about $184,645 per participant. Athletic aid averages $20,338 per athlete.
Whitworth University is one of the top schools for Men's Football, at #4. Based in Spokane, WA, Whitworth University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,710, with expenses of about $7,610 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Eastern Washington University landed the #5 spot for Men's Football. Located in Cheney, WA, Eastern Washington University is a public institution. Eastern Washington University records an NCAA APR of 952, and a 74% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 64%. The program generates about $50,165 in revenue per athlete, compared with $50,165 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $11,120.
University of Puget Sound placed #6 among the best colleges for Men's Football. University of Puget Sound is a private not-for-profit school based in Tacoma, WA. Team revenue averages $5,515 per participant, compared with $5,515 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Central Washington University landed the #7 spot this year. Central Washington University is a public school based in Ellensburg, WA. The program generates about $18,893 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $18,893 per participant. The school awards about $6,377 in athletic aid per athlete.
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
The ranking above is published 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
More about our data sources and methodologies.