| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | N/A | 11 | 0-0 | 603 | 1 | DNP | |
| 1 | Sep 8 | 11 | 1-0 | 572 | 0 | ||
| 2 | Sep 15 | 20 | 1-1 | 140 | 0 | ||
| 3 | Sep 22 | 15 | 2-1 | 231 | 0 | ||
| 4 | Sep 29 | 14 | 3-1 | 372 | 0 | ||
| 5 | Oct 6 | 14 | 4-1 | 413 | 0 | ||
| 6 | Oct 13 | 10 | 5-1 | 606 | 0 | ||
| 7 | Oct 20 | 18 | 5-2 | 170 | 0 | ||
| 8 | Oct 27 | 18 | 5-2 | 184 | 0 | ||
| 9 | Nov 3 | 16 | 6-2 | 309 | 0 | ||
| 10 | Nov 10 | 15 | 7-2 | 328 | 0 | ||
| 11 | Nov 17 | RV | 7-3 | 43 | 0 | ||
| 12 | Nov 24 | RV | 8-3 | 99.5 | 0 | ||
| 13 | Dec 1 | 20 | 8-3 | 82 | 0 | ||
| 14 | Dec 8 | 20 | 8-3 | 96 | 0 | ||
| Final | Jan 3 | NR | 0 | 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.