| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | CFP | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Sep 9 | NR | 2-0 | 0 | 0 | RV | -- | W 40-13 vs Wyoming |
| 3 | Sep 16 | RV | 3-0 | 8 | 0 | RV | -- | W 40-37 at Purdue |
| 4 | Sep 23 | RV | 3-1 | 7 | 0 | RV | -- | L 43-29 vs #2 Georgia |
| 5 | Sep 30 | RV | 3-1 | 8 | 0 | RV | -- | DNP |
| 10 | Nov 4 | NR | 5-4 | 0 | 0 | NR | NR | W 38-17 at #13 Florida |
| 11 | Nov 11 | NR | 6-4 | 0 | 0 | RV | NR | W 33-28 vs Vanderbilt |
| 12 | Nov 18 | RV | 7-4 | 34 | 0 | RV | NR | W 50-17 at Tennessee |
| 13 | Nov 25 | RV | 8-4 | 88 | 0 | RV | 24 | W 38-0 vs Arkansas |
| 14 | Dec 2 | 24 | 8-4 | 133 | 0 | RV | 23 | DNP |
| Final | Jan 8 | RV | 8-5 | 10 | 0 | RV | -- | L 38-33 vs Oklahoma State (Liberty) |
Note: Missouri'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.