View source for 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season

{{Short description|American college football season}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2016}}
{{Infobox NCAA Division I FBS season
| year = 1989
| image = File:NCAA primary logo 1980.svg
| image_caption = 
| number_of_teams = 106
| preseason_ap = [[1989 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.appollarchive.com/football/ap/seasons.cfm?appollid=637 |title=Archived copy |access-date=January 3, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002005606/http://www.appollarchive.com/football/ap/seasons.cfm?appollid=637 |archive-date=October 2, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>
| regular_season = <!-- Date of first regular season game to date of last regular season game -->
| number_of_bowls = 18
| bowl_start = <!-- Date of first bowl -->
| bowl_end = <!-- Date of last bowl -->
| heisman = [[Andre Ware]] ([[quarterback]], [[1989 Houston Cougars football team|Houston]]) 
| champions = [[1989 Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami (FL)]] (AP, Coaches, FWAA)
}}

The '''1989 NCAA Division I-A football season''' ended with [[1989 Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami]] winning its third [[NCAA Division I-A national football championship|National Championship]] during the 1980s, cementing its claim as the decade's top team, winning more titles than any other program.

[[Notre Dame Fighting Irish football|Notre Dame]] signed a six-year, $30&nbsp;million deal with [[NBC]], granting the network the exclusive rights to [[Notre Dame Football on NBC|broadcast]] Notre Dame football. However, the deal would not start until 1991.

[[1989 Florida State Seminoles football team|Florida State]] began 0–2 but finished the season 10–2, having beaten the National Champions Miami earlier in the season and beating [[1989 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|Nebraska]] in the [[1990 Fiesta Bowl|Fiesta Bowl]].

[[Oklahoma Sooners football|Oklahoma]] coach [[Barry Switzer]] resigned June 19 after 16 seasons, during which he led the Sooners to three national championships (1974, 1975, 1985).

[[Michigan Wolverines football|Michigan]] coach [[Bo Schembechler]] retired following the season. [[Steve Spurrier]] was hired by [[Florida Gators football|Florida]] away from [[Duke Blue Devils football|Duke]] in an effort to clean up after a decade of [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]] sanctions.

[[1989 Houston Cougars football team|Houston]] [[quarterback]] [[Andre Ware]] ran the [[run and shoot offense]] all the way to the [[Heisman Trophy]] and numerous records.

==Rule changes==
*Use of a kicking tee for field goals and extra points is prohibited, repealing a rule put forth in 1948; all such kicks must now be made off the ground.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1068759/index.htm |title=No More Tee Party - 09.04.89 - SI Vault |access-date=November 30, 2012 |archive-date=March 3, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140303080052/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1068759/index.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-08-20-sp-1200-story.html |title=They're Not All Kicking and Screaming Over the Absence of Tee |last=Litke |first=Jim |date=August 20, 1989 |website=Los Angeles Times |access-date=October 3, 2019 |quote=It was 1948 before vague rumblings about putting the foot back into the game convinced NCAA officials to allow the use of a 1-inch rubberized tee. Eleven years later, they widened the goal posts to 23-feet-5 from 18-5, and seven years after that, let the tee rise an inch.}}</ref>
*Five-yard delay of game penalties will be enforced on home teams when crowd noise is too loud for opponents to hear signals.

==Conference and program changes==
One team upgraded from Division I-AA and one resumed play after being suspended for two seasons, thus increasing the number of Division I-A teams from 104 to 106.
*[[Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football|Louisiana Tech]] upgraded from Division I-AA as an independent
*The [[SMU Mustangs football|SMU Mustangs]] of the [[Southwest Conference]] resumed play in the wake of the program's "[[Southern Methodist University football scandal|death penalty]]".

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! School !! 1988 Conference !! 1989 Conference
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] [[Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football|Bulldogs]] || [[NCAA Division I FCS independent schools|I-AA Independent]] || [[NCAA Division I FBS independent schools|I-A Independent]]
|}

==Regular season==

===September===
For the first time, the AP Poll ranked 25 teams rather than the previous 20. The first poll of the year featured [[1989 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan]] at No. 1 and defending champion [[1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team|Notre Dame]] at No. 2, followed by No. 3 [[1989 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|Nebraska]], No. 4 [[1989 Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami]], and No. 5 [[1989 USC Trojans football team|USC]].

'''August 31-September 4:''' No. 1 Michigan, No. 3 Nebraska, and No. 4 Miami were idle. No. 2 Notre Dame defeated Virginia 36–13 in the Kickoff Classic, but No. 5 USC blew a late 13–0 lead and lost 14–13 to No. 22 [[1989 Illinois Fighting Illini football team|Illinois]]. No. 8 [[1989 Auburn Tigers football team|Auburn]], who was also idle this week, moved up in the next poll: No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Michigan, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Auburn.

'''September 9:''' No. 1 Notre Dame was idle, and No. 2 Michigan still had not begun their season. No. 3 Miami opened with a 51-3 domination of Wisconsin, No. 4 Nebraska beat Northern Illinois 48–17, and No. 5 Auburn shut out Pacific 55–0. The top five remained the same in the next poll.

'''September 16:''' For the fifth consecutive year, there was a regular-season game between the AP's top two teams. And for the second year in a row Notre Dame was the winner of that matchup, as the No. 1-ranked Fighting Irish defeated No. 2 Michigan 24-19 thanks to [[Rocket Ismail|Rocket Ismail's]] two kickoff returns for touchdowns. Meanwhile, No. 3 Miami beat California 31–3, No. 4 Nebraska won 42–30 over Utah, and No. 5 Auburn defeated Southern Mississippi 24–3. The top five in the next poll were No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Auburn, and No. 5 Michigan.

'''September 23:''' No. 1 Notre Dame defeated Michigan State 21–13, No. 2 Miami won 38–7 at Missouri, and No. 3 Nebraska shut out Minnesota 48–0. No. 4 Auburn was idle. No. 5 Michigan needed a late touchdown and a buzzer-beating field goal to beat No. 24 [[1989 UCLA Bruins football team|UCLA]] 24–23, and the Wolverines fell out of the top five in the next poll. No. 6 [[1989 Colorado Buffaloes football team|Colorado]] did not play this weekend, but they met with a tragedy as quarterback [[Sal Aunese]] (who was also coach [[Bill McCartney|Bill McCartney's]] son-in-law) died of stomach cancer. The Buffaloes moved up in the next poll: No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Auburn, and No. 5 Colorado.

'''September 30:''' No. 1 Notre Dame beat their third straight Big Ten opponent, winning 40–7 at Purdue. Michigan State had to play a top-two team for the second week in a row, and the Spartans fell 26–20 to No. 2 Miami. No. 3 Nebraska defeated Oregon State 35–7, but No. 4 Auburn lost 21–14 at No. 12 [[1989 Tennessee Volunteers football team|Tennessee]]. Just days after Aunese's funeral, No. 5 Colorado traveled to Seattle and won 45–28 over No. 21 [[1989 Washington Huskies football team|Washington]]. No. 6 Michigan beat Maryland 41–21 to move back into the top five: No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Colorado, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Michigan.

===October===
'''October 7:''' No. 1 Notre Dame won 27–17 at Stanford, No. 2 Miami overwhelmed Cincinnati 56–0, No. 3 Colorado crushed Missouri 49–3, No. 4 Nebraska dominated Kansas State 58–7, and No. 5 Michigan blanked Wisconsin 24–0. The top five remained the same in the next poll.

'''October 14:''' No. 1 Notre Dame visited No. 17 [[1989 Air Force Falcons football team|Air Force]] and won 41–27. [[Gino Torretta]], subbing for the injured [[Craig Erickson]], set a school record with 468 passing yards in No. 2 Miami's 48–16 win over San Jose State. No. 3 Colorado won 52–17 at Iowa State, No. 4 Nebraska beat Missouri 50–7, and No. 5 Michigan squeaked past No. 21 [[1989 Michigan State Spartans football team|Michigan State]] 10–7. The top five again remained the same in the next poll.

'''October 21:''' No. 1 Notre Dame came back from a 10-point halftime deficit to pull out a 28–24 victory over No. 9 USC. No. 2 Miami was idle. No. 3 Colorado beat Kansas 49–17, No. 4 Nebraska won 48–23 at Oklahoma State, and No. 5 Michigan defeated Iowa 26–12. The top five once again remained the same.

'''October 28:''' No. 1 Notre Dame defeated No. 7 [[1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football team|Pittsburgh]] 45–7. No. 2 Miami visited No. 9 [[1989 Florida State Seminoles football team|Florida State]], whom they had defeated 31–0 in 1988, and FSU took revenge with a 24–10 victory. No. 3 Colorado won 20–3 over Oklahoma; the Sooners were entering a down period after a series of off-field scandals and the forced resignation of longtime coach [[Barry Switzer]]. No. 4 Nebraska beat Iowa State 49–17, and No. 5 Michigan defeated Indiana 38–10. In a matchup between No. 6 [[1989 Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama]] and No. 14 [[1989 Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State]], the Nittany Lions had the ball inside the one-yard line with 13 seconds left. Penn State coach [[Joe Paterno]] elected to go for a field goal rather than a touchdown, but the kick was blocked and Alabama won the game 17–16. The next poll featured No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Colorado, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Michigan, and No. 5 Alabama.

===November–December===
'''November 4:''' No. 1 Notre Dame shut out Navy 41–0. No. 2 Colorado made it two wins in two weeks against Big 8 powerhouses, preserving a 27–21 victory over No. 3 Nebraska with a last-second deflection in the end zone. No. 4 Michigan defeated Purdue 42–27, No. 5 Alabama beat Mississippi State 23–10, and No. 6 Florida State won 35–10 over South Carolina. The next poll featured No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Colorado, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 Alabama, and No. 5 Florida State.

'''November 11:''' No. 1 Notre Dame overwhelmed SMU 59–6, one of many blowout losses for the Mustangs in their first year back from an [[Southern Methodist University football scandal|NCAA-imposed "death penalty"]] (they had allowed a record-setting 1,021 yards of offense in a 95–21 loss to Houston three weeks earlier). No. 2 Colorado won 41–17 at Oklahoma State to clinch the Big 8 title and a spot in the [[1990 Orange Bowl|Orange Bowl]]; this was the first time since 1961 that a team other than Oklahoma or Nebraska had won an outright Big 8 championship. No. 3 Michigan visited No. 8 Illinois for a 24–10 victory, No. 4 Alabama defeated LSU 32–16, and No. 5 Florida State was idle. The top five remained the same in the next poll.

'''November 18:''' No. 1 Notre Dame won 34–23 at No. 17 Penn State. No. 2 Colorado finished an undefeated regular season with a 59–11 victory at Kansas State. No. 3 Michigan beat Minnesota 49–15, No. 4 Alabama defeated Southern Mississippi 37–14, and No. 5 Florida State won 57–20 over Memphis. The Pac-10 race was decided this weekend, as No. 9 USC topped No. 25 [[1989 Arizona Wildcats football team|Arizona]] 24–3 to clinch a [[1990 Rose Bowl|Rose Bowl]] berth. The top five again remained the same in the next poll.

'''November 25:''' Notre Dame's most famous victory in their 1988 championship season was their upset of then-No. 1 Miami in the [[1988 Notre Dame vs. Miami football game|“Catholics vs. Convicts”]] game. This year's rematch had the opposite result, as the No. 7-ranked Hurricanes upset the top-rated Fighting Irish 27–10. No. 2 Colorado had finished their schedule. No. 3 Michigan wrapped up the Big Ten championship and earned a Rose Bowl bid with a 28–18 defeat of No. 20 [[1989 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]], while No. 4 Alabama and No. 5 Florida State were idle. No. 9 [[1989 Arkansas Razorbacks football team|Arkansas]] held off No. 14 [[1989 Texas A&M Aggies football team|Texas A&M]] 23–22 to win the SWC title and a spot in the [[1990 Cotton Bowl Classic|Cotton Bowl]]. The next poll featured No. 1 Colorado, No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 Miami, and No. 5 Notre Dame.

'''December 2:''' No. 2 Alabama was undefeated going into the last game of the season, but a 30–20 loss to No. 11 Auburn in the [[Iron Bowl]] spoiled their perfect record and caused the two rivals to finish in a three-way tie for the SEC title with No. 8 Tennessee. Despite their loss, Alabama was picked to represent the conference in the [[1990 Sugar Bowl|Sugar Bowl]]. No. 6 Florida State finished their season with a ninth consecutive win after an 0–2 start, defeating Florida 24–17. The other major teams had already completed their schedules, and the final poll of the regular season featured No. 1 Colorado, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 Notre Dame, and No. 5 Florida State.

As sometimes happened in the days before the NCAA had a formal process to pick the national champion, the title was affected by an early bowl game selection. Assuming that Notre Dame would defeat Miami and finish the season at the top of the poll, the Orange Bowl organizers set up what they hoped would be a No. 1 vs. No. 2 game between the Fighting Irish and Colorado. When Notre Dame dropped in the polls after their loss, the Orange Bowl ended up being No. 1 vs. No. 4 with other teams still in contention for the championship. Miami, the actual No. 2 team at the end of the season, ended up playing No. 7 Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. The other major matchups were No. 3 Michigan against No. 12 USC in the Rose Bowl, No. 5 Florida State against No. 6 Nebraska in the Fiesta, and No. 8 Tennessee against No. 10 Arkansas in the Cotton.

==Conference standings==
{| cellpadding="5"
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings}}
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Big Eight Conference football standings}}
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Big Ten Conference football standings}}
|-
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Big West Conference football standings}}
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Mid-American Conference football standings}}
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Pacific-10 Conference football standings}}
|-
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Southeastern Conference football standings}}
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Southwest Conference football standings}}
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 Western Athletic Conference football standings}}
|-
|valign="top" width=25em|{{1989 NCAA Division I-A independents football records}}
|}

==No. 1 and No. 2 progress==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! WEEKS
! No. 1
! No. 2
! Event
!
|-
| PRE
| [[1989 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan]]
| [[1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team|Notre Dame]]
| Notre Dame 36, [[1989 Virginia Cavaliers football team|Virginia]] 13
| Aug 31
|-
|   1–2
| Notre Dame 
| Michigan
| Notre Dame 24, Michigan 19
| Sep 16
|-
|   3–7
| Notre Dame
| [[1989 Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami]]
| [[1989 Florida State Seminoles football team|Florida State]] 24, Miami 10
| Oct 28
|-
|   8–11
| Notre Dame
| [[1989 Colorado Buffaloes football team|Colorado]]
| Miami 27, Notre Dame 10
| Nov 25
|-
|   12
| Colorado
| [[1989 Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama]]
| [[1989 Auburn Tigers football team|Auburn]] 30, Alabama 20
| Dec 2
|-
|   13
| Colorado
| Miami
| Notre Dame 21, Colorado 6
| Jan 1
|}

==Notable rivalry games==
* No. 2 Alabama 20 @ No. 11 Auburn 30 – This was the first Iron Bowl game being played in Auburn.

==Bowl games==
{{main|1989–90 NCAA football bowl games}}
'''New Year's Day Bowls:'''
*[[1990 Orange Bowl|Orange Bowl]]: No. 4 [[1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team|Notre Dame]] 21, No. 1 [[1989 Colorado Buffaloes football team|Colorado]] 6
*[[1990 Sugar Bowl|Sugar Bowl]]: No. 2 [[1989 Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami (FL)]] 33, No. 7 [[1989 Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama]] 25
*[[1990 Rose Bowl|Rose Bowl]]: No. 12 [[1989 USC Trojans football team|USC]] 17, No. 3 [[1989 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan]] 10
*[[1990 Fiesta Bowl|Fiesta Bowl]]: No. 5 [[1989 Florida State Seminoles football team|Florida State]] 41, No. 6 [[1989 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|Nebraska]] 17
*[[1990 Cotton Bowl Classic|Cotton Bowl]]: No. 8 [[1989 Tennessee Volunteers football team|Tennessee]] 31, No. 10 [[1989 Arkansas Razorbacks football team|Arkansas]] 27
*[[1990 Hall of Fame Bowl|Hall of Fame Bowl]]: No. 9 [[1989 Auburn Tigers football team|Auburn]] 31, No. 21 [[1989 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]] 14
*[[1990 Florida Citrus Bowl|Florida Citrus Bowl]]: No. 11 [[1989 Illinois Fighting Illini football team|Illinois]] 31, No. 15 [[1989 Virginia Cavaliers football team|Virginia]] 21

'''Other Bowls:'''
*[[1989 Gator Bowl (December)|Gator Bowl]]: No. 14 [[1989 Clemson Tigers football team|Clemson]] 27, No. 17 [[1989 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|West Virginia]] 7
*[[1989 John Hancock Bowl|John Hancock Bowl]]: No. 23 [[1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football team|Pittsburgh]] 31, No. 16 [[1989 Texas A&M Aggies football team|Texas A&M]] 28
*[[1989 Copper Bowl|Copper Bowl]]: [[1989 Arizona Wildcats football team|Arizona]] 17, [[1989 NC State Wolfpack football team|NC State]] 10
*[[1989 Holiday Bowl|Holiday Bowl]]: No. 18 [[1989 Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State]] 50, No. 19 [[1989 BYU Cougars football team|BYU]] 39
*[[1989 Freedom Bowl|Freedom Bowl]]: [[1989 Washington Huskies football team|Washington]] 34, [[1989 Florida Gators football team|Florida]] 7
*[[1989 Peach Bowl|Peach Bowl]]: [[1989 Syracuse Orangemen football team|Syracuse]] 19, [[1989 Georgia Bulldogs football team|Georgia]] 18
*[[1989 All-American Bowl|All-American Bowl]]: No. 24 [[1989 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team|Texas Tech]] 49, No. 20 [[1989 Duke Blue Devils football team|Duke]] 21
*[[1989 Liberty Bowl|Liberty Bowl]]: [[1989 Ole Miss Rebels football team|Mississippi]] 42, [[1989 Air Force Falcons football team|Air Force]] 29
*[[1989 Aloha Bowl|Aloha Bowl]]: No. 22 [[1989 Michigan State Spartans football team|Michigan State]] 33, No. 25 [[1989 Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football team|Hawaii]] 13
*[[1989 Independence Bowl|Independence Bowl]]: [[1989 Oregon Ducks football team|Oregon]] 27, [[1989 Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team|Tulsa]] 24
*[[1989 California Bowl|California Bowl]]: [[1989 Fresno State Bulldogs football team|Fresno State]] 27, [[1989 Ball State Cardinals football team|Ball State]] 6

==Final AP poll==
{{main|1989 NCAA Division I-A football rankings}}
#[[1989 Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami (FL)]]
#[[1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team|Notre Dame]]
#[[1989 Florida State Seminoles football team|Florida State]]
#[[1989 Colorado Buffaloes football team|Colorado]] 
#[[1989 Tennessee Volunteers football team|Tennessee]]
#[[1989 Auburn Tigers football team|Auburn]]
#[[1989 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan]]
#[[1989 USC Trojans football team|Southern California]]
#[[1989 Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama]]
#[[1989 Illinois Fighting Illini football team|Illinois]]
#[[1989 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|Nebraska]]
#[[1989 Clemson Tigers football team|Clemson]]
#[[1989 Arkansas Razorbacks football team|Arkansas]]
#[[1989 Houston Cougars football team|Houston]]
#[[1989 Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State]]
#[[1989 Michigan State Spartans football team|Michigan State]]
#[[1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football team|Pittsburgh]]
#[[1989 Virginia Cavaliers football team|Virginia]]
#[[1989 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team|Texas Tech]]
#[[1989 Texas A&M Aggies football team|Texas A&M]]
#[[1989 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|West Virginia]]
#[[1989 BYU Cougars football team|BYU]]
#[[1989 Washington Huskies football team|Washington]]
#[[1989 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]]
#[[1989 Arizona Wildcats football team|Arizona]]

==Final Coaches poll==
# [[1989 Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami (FL)]]
# [[1989 Florida State Seminoles football team|Florida St.]]
# [[1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team|Notre Dame]]
# [[1989 Colorado Buffaloes football team|Colorado]]
# [[1989 Tennessee Volunteers football team|Tennessee]]
# [[1989 Auburn Tigers football team|Auburn]]
# [[1989 Alabama Crimson Tide football team|Alabama]]
# [[1989 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan]]
# [[1989 USC Trojans football team|Southern California]]
# [[1989 Illinois Fighting Illini football team|Illinois]]
# [[1989 Clemson Tigers football team|Clemson]]
# [[1989 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|Nebraska]]
# [[1989 Arkansas Razorbacks football team|Arkansas]]
# [[1989 Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn St.]]
# [[1989 Virginia Cavaliers football team|Virginia]]
# [[1989 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team|Texas Tech]]
# [[1989 Michigan State Spartans football team|Michigan St.]]
# [[1989 BYU Cougars football team|Brigham Young]]
# [[1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football team|Pittsburgh]]
# [[1989 Washington Huskies football team|Washington]]

==Heisman Trophy voting==
''The [[Heisman Trophy]] is given to the year's most outstanding player''

{| class="wikitable"
! Player !! School !! Position !! 1st !! 2nd !! 3rd !! Total
|-
| '''[[Andre Ware]]''' || '''[[1989 Houston Cougars football team|Houston]]''' || '''QB''' || '''242''' || '''132''' || '''83''' || '''1,073'''
|-
| [[Anthony Thompson (American football)|Anthony Thompson]] || [[1989 Indiana Hoosiers football team|Indiana]] || RB || 185 || 170 || 108 || 1,003
|-
| [[Major Harris (American football)|Major Harris]] || [[1989 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|West Virginia]] || QB || 115 || 115 || 134 || 709
|-
| [[Tony Rice (gridiron football)|Tony Rice]] || [[1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team|Notre Dame]] || QB || 72 || 101 || 105 || 523
|-
| [[Darian Hagan]] || [[1989 Colorado Buffaloes football team|Colorado]] || QB || 52 || 42 || 52 || 292
|-
| [[Dee Dowis]] || [[1989 Air Force Falcons football team|Air Force]] || QB || 15 || 31 || 38 || 145
|-
| [[Emmitt Smith]] || [[1989 Florida Gators football team|Florida]] || RB || 13 || 29 || 43 || 140
|-
| [[Percy Snow]] || [[1989 Michigan State Spartans football team|Michigan State]] || LB || 7 || 15 || 19 || 70
|-
| [[Ty Detmer]] || [[1989 BYU Cougars football team|BYU]] || QB || 3 || 13 || 14 || 49
|-
| [[Blair Thomas]] || [[1989 Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State]] || RB || 4 || 12 || 12 || 48
|-
| [[Raghib Ismail]] || Notre Dame || WR || 3 || 11 || 17 || 48
|}

==Other major awards==
*Maxwell (Player): Anthony Thompson, Indiana
*Camp (Back): Anthony Thompson, Indiana
*O'Brien Award (QB): Andre Ware, Houston
*Rockne (Lineman): Chris Zorich, Notre Dame, NT
*Lombardi (Linebacker): Percy Snow, Michigan St.
*Outland (Interior): Mohammed Elewonibi, BYU
*Coach of the Year: Bill McCartney, Colorado

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{NCAA football season navbox}}

[[Category:1989 NCAA Division I-A football season| ]]