1959 NCAA College Division football season

The 1959 NCAA College Division football season was the fourth season of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the NCAA College Division level.

1959 NCAA College Division football season
Champion(s)	Bowling Green (UPI) Florida A&M (black)
College Division football seasons

Conference standings

1959 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Fresno State $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Los Angeles State 3 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Cal Poly 3 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 UC Santa Barbara 2 – 3 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Long Beach State 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 San Diego State 0 – 5 – 0     1 – 6 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1959 Central Intercollegiate Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T St. Benedict's $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Pittsburg State 4 – 1 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Washburn 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Emporia State 2 – 3 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 Fort Hays State 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Omaha 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Far Western Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 17 San Francisco State $ 5 – 0 – 0     10 – 0 – 0 Humboldt State 4 – 1 – 0     9 – 1 – 0 Nevada 3 – 2 – 0     4 – 3 – 0 Chico State 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 Sacramento State 1 – 4 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 UC Davis 0 – 5 – 0     1 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from College Division poll
1959 Gulf States Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Louisiana Tech $ 5 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 0 Southeastern Louisiana 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 2 – 0 McNeese State 2 – 3 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Northwestern State 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 1 Southwestern Louisiana 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Northeast Louisiana State 1 – 4 – 0     2 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Hoosier Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Anderson (IN) $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 1 – 0 Taylor 3 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Franklin (IN) 3 – 2 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Hanover 2 – 3 – 0     2 – 6 – 1 Indiana Central 1 – 3 – 1     3 – 5 – 1 Manchester (IN) 0 – 4 – 1     3 – 5 – 1 + – Conference co-champions	1959 Indiana Collegiate Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Butler $ 6 – 0 – 0     9 – 0 – 0 Evansville 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Indiana State 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Saint Joseph's (IN) 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 Valparaiso 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 DePauw 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 7 – 1 Ball State 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1959 Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Western Illinois $ 6 – 0 – 0     9 – 0 – 0 Northern Illinois State 4 – 2 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Central Michigan 4 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Southern Illinois 4 – 2 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Eastern Illinois 1 – 4 – 1     3 – 5 – 1 Eastern Michigan 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 7 – 0 Illinois State 0 – 5 – 1     3 – 5 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1959 Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Wartburg $ 8 – 0 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 Buena Vista 7 – 1 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 Luther 6 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Iowa Wesleyan 5 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Dubuque 4 – 4 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Parsons 3 – 5 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Central (IA) 2 – 6 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Upper Iowa 1 – 7 – 0     1 – 8 – 0 Simpson 0 – 8 – 0     0 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Lone Star Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Texas A&I +^ 6 – 1 – 0     12 – 1 – 0 East Texas State + 6 – 1 – 0     9 – 1 – 0 Lamar Tech 4 – 3 – 0     8 – 3 – 0 Stephen F. Austin 4 – 3 – 0     4 – 6 – 1 Sam Houston State 3 – 4 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 Howard Payne 3 – 4 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Southwest Texas State 2 – 5 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Sul Ross 0 – 7 – 0     0 – 9 – 0 + – Conference co-champions ^ – NAIA playoff participant
1959 Mid-American Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Bowling Green $ 6 – 0 – 0     9 – 0 – 0 Ohio 4 – 2 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Miami 3 – 2 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Kent State 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Western Michigan 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Marshall 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 8 – 0 Toledo 0 – 6 – 0     2 – 6 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1959 Mid-Ohio League football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Bluffton $ 5 – 0 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Findlay 3 – 1 – 1     5 – 3 – 1 Ashland 3 – 1 – 1     4 – 3 – 2 Ohio Northern 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Defiance 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 8 – 0 Wilmington (OH) 0 – 5 – 0     1 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Middle Atlantic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T University Delaware x 5 – 0 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 Gettysburg 3 – 2 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Lafayette 4 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Bucknell 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Rutgers 2 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Lehigh 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Temple 0 – 5 – 0     0 – 9 – 0 Muhlenberg* 1 – 2 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 College–Northern Albright x 6 – 1 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Juniata 5 – 1 – 0     7 – 1 – 0 Wagner 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Lebanon Valley 3 – 2 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Susquehanna 3 – 2 – 0     4 – 3 – 0 Moravian 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 Wilkes 2 – 5 – 0     2 – 5 – 0 Lycoming 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 Scranton* 3 – 1 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 College–Southern Johns Hopkins x 6 – 0 – 0     7 – 1 – 0 Pennsylvania Military 6 – 2 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Western Maryland 3 – 2 – 1     5 – 2 – 2 Ursinus 2 – 5 – 0     2 – 6 – 0 Dickinson 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 7 – 0 Haverford 0 – 5 – 0     1 – 5 – 0 Drexel 0 – 5 – 0     1 – 6 – 0 Franklin & Marshall* 1 – 2 – 1     4 – 3 – 1 Swarthmore* 1 – 3 – 0     ? – ? – ? West Chester* 0 – 0 – 0     7 – 1 – 0 x – Division champion/co-champions * – Ineligible for championship due to insufficient conference games Rankings from AP Poll
1959 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T SE Missouri State $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 NE Missouri State 3 – 1 – 1     7 – 1 – 1 NW Missouri State 2 – 2 – 1     3 – 3 – 2 Missouri–Rolla 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 SW Missouri State 1 – 4 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Central Missouri State 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 North Central Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Augustana (SD) $ 4 – 1 – 1     6 – 2 – 1 North Dakota State 3 – 2 – 1     4 – 4 – 1 South Dakota 3 – 2 – 1     4 – 5 – 1 Iowa State Teachers 3 – 3 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Morningside 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 South Dakota State 2 – 4 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 North Dakota 1 – 4 – 1     2 – 5 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1959 Ohio Valley Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 3 Middle Tennessee State + 5 – 0 – 1     10 – 0 – 1 Tennessee Tech + 5 – 0 – 1     7 – 2 – 2 East Tennessee State 4 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Western Kentucky 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Eastern Kentucky 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Morehead State 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Murray State 0 – 6 – 0     0 – 10 – 0 + – Conference co-champions Rankings from UPI College Division poll
1959 Mid-Ohio League football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Bluffton $ 5 – 0 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Findlay 3 – 1 – 1     5 – 3 – 1 Ashland 3 – 1 – 1     4 – 3 – 2 Ohio Northern 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Defiance 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 8 – 0 Wilmington (OH) 0 – 5 – 0     1 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Rocky Mountain Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Idaho State $ 3 – 0 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Adams State 3 – 1 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 Colorado State–Greeley 3 – 2 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Colorado College 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 Colorado Mines 1 – 3 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Western State 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team   W   L         W   L   Southern $   7 – 0         8 – 2   Prairie View A&M   6 – 1         9 – 2   Texas Southern   5 – 2         7 – 3   Jackson State   4 – 3         6 – 4   Arkansas AM&N   2 – 5         4 – 6   Grambling   2 – 5         4 – 6   Texas College   2 – 5         4 – 6   Wiley   0 – 7         2 – 8   $ – Conference champion Rankings from College Division poll
1959 Yankee Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Connecticut $ 4 – 0 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 UMass 2 – 2 – 0     3 – 5 – 1 Maine 1 – 2 – 2     3 – 3 – 2 New Hampshire 1 – 2 – 1     3 – 3 – 2 Rhode Island 1 – 2 – 1     3 – 5 – 1 Vermont 0 – 1 – 0     4 – 3 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1959 NCAA College Division independents football records Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Buffalo   –       8 – 1 – 0 Carnegie Tech   –       7 – 1 – 0 Cal Poly Pomona   –       7 – 1 – 1 Santa Clara   –       4 – 1 – 0 Northern Michigan   –       6 – 2 – 0 UC Riverside   –       5 – 2 – 0 Memphis State   –       6 – 4 – 0 Mississippi Southern   –       6 – 4 – 0 Abilene Christian   –       5 – 5 – 0 Baldwin–Wallace   –       4 – 4 – 0 Wabash   –       3 – 5 – 1 Xavier   –       4 – 6 – 0 Rose Poly   –       2 – 4 – 1 Hawaii   –       3 – 6 – 0 La Verne   –       3 – 6 – 0 Pepperdine   –       2 – 5 – 1 Chattanooga   –       3 – 7 – 0 Tampa   –       3 – 7 – 0 Drake   –       2 – 7 – 0 Northeastern   –       1 – 6 – 1 Washington University   –       1 – 7 – 0

Rankings

Main article: 1959 NCAA College Division football rankings

Small college poll

In 1959, United Press International (UPI) conducted its "small college" coaches' poll for the second time; they voted the Bowling Green Falcons, who had a 9–0 record and outscored their opponents 274–83,[1] as the number one team.[2]

United Press International (coaches) final poll
Published on November 27[3]

Rank	School	Record	No. 1 votes	Total points
1	Bowling Green	9–0	23	407
2	Mississippi Southern	6–3	5	247
3	Middle Tennessee	9–0	2	231
4	Delaware	8–1	1	211
5	East Texas State	9–1		179
6	Western Illinois	9–0		152
7	Memphis State	5–4		86
8	Louisiana Tech	8–1	2	81
9	Ohio	7–2		76
10	West Chester	7–1		71

References

1. http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/active/b/bowling_green/1955-1959_yearly_results.php
2. "Bowling Green Is Voted No. 1", Lincoln Evening Journal, November 27, 1959, p14
3. UPI (November 27, 1959). "Bowling Green Top Small College Football Team". Palladium-Item. Richmond, Indiana. Retrieved February 27, 2017 – via newspapers.com.