| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | BCS | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | Aug 22 | RV | 0-0 | 83 | 0 | NR | -- | DNP |
| 8 | Oct 25 | RV | 1 | 0 | NR | |||
| 9 | Nov 1 | RV | 11 | 0 | NR | |||
| 10 | Nov 8 | RV | 11 | 0 | NR | |||
| 11 | Nov 15 | 25 | 7-2 | 145 | 0 | RV | NR | W 31-0 vs #23 South Florida |
| 12 | Nov 22 | NR | 7-3 | 0 | 0 | NR | NR | L 31-13 at Syracuse |
| 13 | Nov 29 | RV | 8-3 | 4 | 0 | RV | NR | W 34-14 at Louisville |
| Final | Jan 8 | RV | 9-4 | 37 | 0 | RV | -- | W 45-24 vs UCF |
Note: Rutgers' 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.