| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | N/A | 3 | 0-0 | 1013 | 5 | DNP | |
| 1 | Sep 11 | 5 | 2-0 | 922 | 1 | ||
| 2 | Sep 18 | 3 | 3-0 | 1053 | 4 | ||
| 3 | Sep 25 | 5 | 4-0 | 1087 | 2 | ||
| 4 | Oct 2 | 5 | 5-0 | 1049 | 2 | ||
| 5 | Oct 9 | 3 | 6-0 | 1071 | 3 | ||
| 6 | Oct 16 | 2 | 6-0 | 1085 | 11 | ||
| 7 | Oct 23 | 2 | 7-0 | 1203 | 10 | ||
| 8 | Oct 30 | 2 | 8-0 | 1168 | 10 | ||
| 9 | Nov 6 | 2 | 9-0 | 1193 | 13 | ||
| 10 | Nov 13 | 1 | 10-0 | 1296 | 55 | W 19-10 vs NC State | |
| 11 | Nov 20 | 1 | 10-0 | 1306 | 59 | DNP | |
| 12 | Nov 27 | 1 | 11-0 | 1256 | 52 | W 17-10 vs #15 Pittsburgh | |
| 13 | Dec 4 | 1 | 11-0 | 1159 | 48 | DNP | |
| Final | Jan 2 | 4 | 11-1 | 1168 | 0 | L 14-7 vs #2 Alabama (Sugar) |
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.