| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | CFP | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Sep 10 | NR | 0 | 0 | RV | -- | W 48-7 vs Western Michigan | |
| 3 | Sep 17 | RV | 2 | 0 | RV | -- | W 35-20 at Purdue | |
| 4 | Sep 24 | RV | 8 | 0 | RV | -- | W 29-16 vs Army |
Note: Syracuse's ranking in the final 1961 poll has been changed to unranked after the original AP wire story and poll was revisited and confirmed across several newspapers.