| Week | Date | Rank | Rec | Points | FPV | CP | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | Sep 9 | 9 | 0-0 | 111 | 0 | DNP | |
| 1 | Sep 24 | 4 | 1-0 | 253 | 3 | ||
| 2 | Oct 1 | 4 | 2-0 | 227 | 0 | ||
| 3 | Oct 8 | 3 | 3-0 | 321 | 3 | ||
| 4 | Oct 15 | NR | 0 | 0 | |||
| 9 | Nov 19 | 9 | 8-1 | 94 | 3 | ||
| 10 | Nov 26 | 9 | 9-1 | 129 | 3 | ||
| Final | Dec 3 | 9 | 9-1 | 135 | 2 |
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.