The AP rankings were selected by a board of sports writers, and the UPI rankings were selected by a board of small-college coaches.
The 1967 San Diego State Aztecs football team (10–1), led by head coach Don Coryell, was rated as the small-college champion by both the AP and UPI.
The Aztecs' only loss was to a University Division team, Utah State.
North Dakota State was ranked second by both, then lost to Texas–Arlington in the Pecan Bowl.
The New Pittsburgh Courier, a leading African American newspaper, ranked the top 1967 teams from historically black colleges and universities in an era when college football was often racially segregated.