| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oct 9 | 7 | 2-1 | 346 | 2 | |
| 2 | Oct 16 | 11 | 2-2 | 128 | 0 | |
| 3 | Oct 23 | 10 | 3-2 | 153 | 0 | |
| 4 | Oct 30 | NR | 0 | 0 | ||
| 6 | Nov 13 | 14 | 5-3 | 71 | 0 | |
| 7 | Nov 20 | NR | 0 | 0 |
Note: Purdue'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.