by our College Data Analytics Team
Picking a college for your sport means looking beyond the field or court. Our ranking highlights 53 schools for Men’s Football by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
So you can compare your options, 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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Learn more about these schools below:
Rice University earned the #1 spot in this year's ranking for Men's Football. This private not-for-profit school is set in Houston, TX. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 981, alongside a GSR of 89%. About 80% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $159,279, compared with $159,279 spent per athlete. The school awards about $41,166 in athletic aid per athlete.
Baylor University came in at #2 on this year's ranking for Men's Football. This private not-for-profit school is set in Waco, TX. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 978, and a 91% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 70%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $375,087, compared with $347,882 spent per athlete. The school awards about $30,455 in athletic aid per athlete.
The University of Texas at Austin ranked #3 among the best colleges for Men's Football. This public school is set in Austin, TX. The team's NCAA APR score is 991, alongside a GSR of 77%. Its federal graduation rate is 58%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $1,456,718, with expenses of about $596,658 per participant. The school awards about $22,650 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus is one of the top schools for Men's Football, at #4. This public school is set in Norman, OK. University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus records an NCAA APR of 982, and a 78% Graduation Success Rate. About 60% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $986,306, with expenses of about $556,131 per participant. Athletic aid averages $27,789 per athlete.
University of Arizona ranked #5 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Based in Tucson, AZ, University of Arizona is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 976, with a Graduation Success Rate of 88%. About 68% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $334,477 per participant, with expenses of about $334,477 per participant. Athletic aid averages $20,887 per athlete.
Arizona State University Campus Immersion came in at #6 in this year's ranking. Based in Tempe, AZ, Arizona State University Campus Immersion is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 977, and a 82% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 57%. The program generates about $409,367 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $409,367 per participant. Athletic aid averages $27,490 per athlete.
Oklahoma State University-Main Campus came in at #7 in this year's ranking. Based in Stillwater, OK, Oklahoma State University-Main Campus is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 988, alongside a GSR of 88%. Its federal graduation rate is 67%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $419,061, with expenses of about $241,402 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $12,335.
Southern Methodist University ranked #8 on our 2026 list for Men's Football. This private not-for-profit school is set in Dallas, TX. The team's NCAA APR score is 954, and a 87% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 76%. Team revenue averages $371,439 per participant, against $371,439 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $56,388.
Texas A&M University-College Station placed #9 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Based in College Station, TX, Texas A&M University-College Station is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 968, and a 78% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 53%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $742,975, with expenses of about $412,535 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $17,123.
Texas Tech University ranked #10 on our 2026 list for Men's Football. Texas Tech University is a public school based in Lubbock, TX. The team's NCAA APR score is 992, alongside a GSR of 75%. The federal graduation rate stands at 49%. The program generates about $568,068 in revenue per athlete, against $323,135 in expenses. The school awards about $13,662 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of New Mexico-Main Campus did well this year, earning the #11 position. This public school is set in Albuquerque, NM. The team's NCAA APR score is 968, and a 85% Graduation Success Rate. About 68% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $130,482 per participant, compared with $125,906 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $19,510.
University of Tulsa landed the #12 spot this year. Located in Tulsa, OK, University of Tulsa is a private not-for-profit institution. University of Tulsa records an NCAA APR of 959, alongside a GSR of 81%. Its federal graduation rate is 61%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $160,650, compared with $160,650 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $34,797 per athlete.
The University of Texas at San Antonio ranked #13 on our 2026 list for Men's Football. The University of Texas at San Antonio is a public school based in San Antonio, TX. The team's NCAA APR score is 965, and a 89% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 68%. The program generates about $151,297 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $151,297 per participant. The school awards about $16,155 in athletic aid per athlete.
Texas Christian University came in at #14 in this year's ranking. Based in Fort Worth, TX, Texas Christian University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 967, with a Graduation Success Rate of 68%. Its federal graduation rate is 47%. Team revenue averages $458,218 per participant, with expenses of about $458,218 per participant. The school awards about $37,174 in athletic aid per athlete.
Austin College came in at #15 in this year's ranking. Austin College is a private not-for-profit school based in Sherman, TX. The program generates about $7,580 in revenue per athlete, against $7,035 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of North Texas did well this year, earning the #16 position. This public school is set in Denton, TX. University of North Texas records an NCAA APR of 963, with a Graduation Success Rate of 82%. Its federal graduation rate is 64%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $93,227, with expenses of about $93,227 per participant. Athletic aid averages $11,504 per athlete.
University of Mary Hardin-Baylor placed #17 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Located in Belton, TX, University of Mary Hardin-Baylor is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $8,869, compared with $8,869 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Oklahoma Baptist University ranked #18 on our 2026 list for Men's Football. Located in Shawnee, OK, Oklahoma Baptist University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $19,088 per participant, with expenses of about $17,950 per participant. The school awards about $8,273 in athletic aid per athlete.
Texas Lutheran University placed #19 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Texas Lutheran University is a private not-for-profit school based in Seguin, TX. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $4,826, against $4,724 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Abilene Christian University came in at #20 in this year's ranking. Located in Abilene, TX, Abilene Christian University is a private not-for-profit institution. Abilene Christian University records an NCAA APR of 951, alongside a GSR of 84%. The federal graduation rate stands at 50%. Team revenue averages $79,876 per participant, compared with $78,354 spent per athlete. The school awards about $26,012 in athletic aid per athlete.
New Mexico State University-Main Campus placed #21 among the best colleges for Men's Football. This public school is set in Las Cruces, NM. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 960, with a Graduation Success Rate of 79%. About 63% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $79,055 per participant, compared with $79,055 spent per athlete. The school awards about $17,921 in athletic aid per athlete.
Sam Houston State University placed #22 among the best colleges for Men's Football. This public school is set in Huntsville, TX. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 977, with a Graduation Success Rate of 73%. The federal graduation rate stands at 61%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $76,693, with expenses of about $76,693 per participant. Athletic aid averages $11,743 per athlete.
Hardin-Simmons University placed #23 among the best colleges for Men's Football. Based in Abilene, TX, Hardin-Simmons University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,653 in revenue per athlete, compared with $6,021 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Texas State University landed the #24 spot this year. This public school is set in San Marcos, TX. Texas State University records an NCAA APR of 954, with a Graduation Success Rate of 74%. The federal graduation rate stands at 58%. Team revenue averages $180,187 per participant, against $180,187 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $16,371 per athlete.
University of Houston came in at #25 in this year's ranking. Based in Houston, TX, University of Houston is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 954, and a 73% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 60%. Team revenue averages $195,558 per participant, against $195,558 in expenses. The school awards about $15,948 in athletic aid per athlete.
These schools rounded out the top of the list:
*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
Read more about our data sources and methodologies.
