| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | BCS | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | Aug 20 | 21 | 0-0 | 258 | 0 | 21 | -- | DNP |
| 1 | Sep 6 | 21 | 1-0 | 242 | 0 | 19 | -- | W 17-6 vs Miami (OH) |
| 2 | Sep 11 | RV | 1-1 | 12 | 0 | RV | -- | L 37-30 (1OT) at Arizona State |
| 3 | Sep 18 | RV | 2-1 | 10 | 0 | NR | -- | W 69-0 vs Western Illinois |
| 4 | Sep 25 | RV | 2-2 | 1 | 0 | NR | -- | L 38-28 at #1 Oklahoma |
| 7 | Oct 16 | NR | 3-3 | 0 | 0 | NR | NR | W 52-17 vs Iowa State |
| 9 | Oct 30 | NR | 4-4 | 0 | 0 | RV | NR | W 38-31 (1OT) at #16 Texas A&M |
| 11 | Nov 13 | NR | 5-5 | 0 | 0 | RV | NR | W 17-5 vs #21 Texas |
| 12 | Nov 20 | NR | 6-5 | 0 | 0 | RV | NR | W 31-27 vs Texas Tech |
| 13 | Nov 27 | RV | 7-5 | 13 | 0 | RV | 25 | W 24-10 at Kansas |
| 14 | Dec 4 | RV | 7-5 | 5 | 0 | RV | NR | DNP |
| Final | Jan 10 | RV | 8-5 | 23 | 0 | RV | -- | W 41-24 vs North Carolina (Independence) |
Note: Missouri'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.