| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | N/A | 6 | 0-0 | 469 | 1 | DNP | |
| 1 | Sep 8 | 10 | 1-0 | 282 | 0 | ||
| 2 | Sep 15 | 7 | 2-0 | 433 | 0 | ||
| 3 | Sep 22 | 12 | 2-1 | 278 | 0 | ||
| 4 | Sep 29 | 10 | 3-1 | 296 | 0 | ||
| 5 | Oct 6 | 9 | 4-1 | 383 | 0 | ||
| 6 | Oct 13 | 9 | 5-1 | 434 | 0 | W 39-0 vs #10 West Virginia | |
| 7 | Oct 20 | 9 | 6-1 | 418 | 0 | ||
| 8 | Oct 27 | 9 | 7-1 | 459 | 0 | ||
| 9 | Nov 3 | 8 | 8-1 | 492 | 0 | ||
| 10 | Nov 10 | 11 | 8-2 | 214 | 0 | ||
| 11 | Nov 17 | 10 | 8-2 | 308 | 0 | ||
| 12 | Nov 24 | 10 | 9-2 | 329 | 0 | ||
| 13 | Dec 1 | 8 | 9-2 | 382 | 0 | ||
| Final | Jan 2 | 10 | 9-3 | 319 | 0 |
Note: Penn State'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.