| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | BCS | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | Aug 16 | 22 | 0-0 | 293 | 0 | 22 | -- | DNP |
| 1 | Sep 2 | 19 | 1-0 | 467 | 0 | 19 | -- | W 66-10 vs Coastal Carolina |
| 2 | Sep 7 | 17 | 2-0 | 607 | 0 | 17 | -- | W 45-14 vs Oregon State |
| 3 | Sep 14 | 16 | 3-0 | 779 | 0 | 15 | -- | W 55-13 at Syracuse |
| 4 | Sep 21 | 12 | 4-0 | 891 | 0 | 12 | -- | W 45-3 vs Temple |
| 5 | Sep 28 | 6 | 5-0 | 1252 | 0 | 6 | -- | W 38-24 vs #22 Illinois |
| 6 | Oct 5 | 6 | 6-0 | 1287 | 0 | 6 | -- | W 20-6 at Purdue |
| 7 | Oct 12 | 3 | 7-0 | 1492 | 0 | 3 | -- | W 48-7 at Wisconsin |
| 8 | Oct 19 | 3 | 8-0 | 1506 | 0 | 3 | 3 | W 46-17 vs Michigan |
| 9 | Oct 26 | 3 | 9-0 | 1503 | 0 | 3 | 3 | W 13-6 at #10 Ohio State |
| 10 | Nov 2 | 3 | 9-0 | 1525 | 6 | 2 | 3 | DNP |
| 11 | Nov 9 | 7 | 9-1 | 1161 | 0 | 8 | 8 | L 24-23 at Iowa |
| 12 | Nov 16 | 7 | 10-1 | 1178 | 0 | 8 | 8 | W 34-7 vs Indiana |
| 13 | Nov 23 | 6 | 11-1 | 1238 | 0 | 6 | 8 | W 49-18 vs #17 Michigan State |
| 14 | Nov 30 | 6 | 11-1 | 1257 | 0 | 6 | 8 | DNP |
| 15 | Dec 7 | 6 | 11-1 | 1259 | 0 | 6 | 8 | DNP |
| Final | Jan 9 | 8 | 11-2 | 1153 | 0 | 8 | -- | L 38-24 vs #5 USC (Rose) |
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.