| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | BCS | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Oct 7 | RV | 5-1 | 3 | 0 | RV | -- | W 42-17 vs Virginia |
| 8 | Oct 21 | NR | 6-2 | 0 | 0 | RV | NR | W 33-30 vs North Carolina |
Note: Duke'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.