| 1961 small college football rankings | |
|---|---|
No. 1: Pittsburg State | |
| Small college football rankings (AP, UPI) | |
«1960 1962» |
The 1961 small college football rankings are rankings of college football teams representing smaller college and university teams during the 1961 college football season, including the 1961 NCAA College Division football season and the 1961 NAIA football season. Separate rankings were published by the Associated Press (AP) and the United Press International (UPI). The AP rankings were selected by a board of experts, and the UPI rankings were selected by a board of small-college coaches from throughout the country.
In its final rankings, the AP selected the 1961 Pittsburg State Gorillas football team as the small-college national champion. The Gorillas finished the season with a perfect 11–0 record, shut out seven opponents, and defeated Linfield in the Camellia Bowl. For its second through fifth spots, the AP selected four other undefeated teams: Baldwin–Wallace (9–0); Fresno State (10–0); Florida A&M (10–0); and Whittier (8–0).
The UPI board of coaches also selected Pittsburg as the small-college champion with first-place votes from 14 of the participating coaches and 250 total points. The UPI rated Baldwin–Wallace second, Mississippi Southern (8–2) third, and Southeastern Louisiana (9–1) fourth.[1]
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) also conducted a poll of coaches at the end of the 1961 regular season. Pittsburg was selected as the national champion in the NAIA poll.
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| Not ranked previous week | ||
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Win–loss record | |
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Number of first place votes | |
т
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Tied with team above or below also with this symbol |
| Week 1 Oct 5[2] | Week 2 Oct 12[3] | Week 3 Oct 19[4] | Week 4 Oct 26[5] | Week 5 Nov 2[6] | Week 6 Nov 9[7] | Week 7 Nov 16[8] | Week 8 Nov 23[9] | ||
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| 1. | Texas A&I | Texas A&I (3–0) (5) | Pittsburg State (5–0) (3) | Pittsburg State (6–0) (4) | Pittsburg State (7–0) (6) | Pittsburg State (8–0) (3) | Pittsburg State (9–0) (5) | Pittsburg State (9–0) (5) | 1. |
| 2. | Hillsdale (1) | Humboldt State (3–0) (2) | Baldwin–Wallace (4–0) | Northern Michigan (5–1) | Baldwin–Wallace (5–0) | Baldwin–Wallace (6–0) (1) | Baldwin–Wallace (8–0) | Baldwin–Wallace (9–0) | 2. |
| 3. | Southeastern Louisiana (1) | Southeastern Louisiana (4–0) (1) | Southeastern Louisiana (4–0) | Baldwin–Wallace (4–0) (2) | Southeastern Louisiana (7–0) | Southeastern Louisiana (8–0) (2) | Fresno State (8–0) | Fresno State (9–0) | 3. |
| 4. | Southern Illinois | Pittsburg State (4–0) | Northern Michigan (4–1) (1) | Southeastern Louisiana (6–0) | Northern Michigan (5–1) | Northern Michigan (6–1) | Whittier (8–0) | Florida A&M (8–0) | 4. |
| 5. | Humboldt State | Southern Illinois | Whittier (5–0) | Whittier | Whittier | Fresno State (7–0) | Florida A&M (7–0) | Whittier (9–0) | 5. |
| 6. | Mississippi Southern | Northern Michigan (3–1) | Hofstra (3–0) | Fresno State (5–0) | Fresno State (6–0) | Florida A&M (6–0) | Lehigh (6–2) | Lehigh (7–2) | 6. |
| 7. | Pittsburg State | Baldwin–Wallace (3–0) | Texas A&I (3–1) (1) | Hofstra (4–0) т | Florida A&M (5–0) | Whittier (7–0) | Lenoir–Rhyne (7–1–1) (1) | Linfield (9–0) (1) | 7. |
| 8. | Northern Michigan | Delaware (3–0) | Lamar Tech (4–0) | Northwestern State (6–0) (1) т [note 1] | Mississippi Southern (5–1) | Lehigh | Linfield (8–0) (1) | Southeastern Louisiana (9–1) | 8. |
| 9. | Lehigh (1) | Whittier (4–0) (1) | West Chester (4–0) (1) | West Chester | Lenoir–Rhyne | Linfield (7–0) (1) | Southeastern Louisiana (8–1) | Lenoir–Rhyne (7–1–1) (1) | 9. |
| 10. | Newberry (1) т | West Chester (3–0) (1) | Fresno State (5–0) | Mississippi Southern (5–1) | Lamar Tech (1) т | Lenoir–Rhyne (6–1–1) (1) | Amherst (9–0) (1) | Butler (9–0) т | 10. |
| 11. | Southern (1) т | Linfield т | Mississippi Southern (7–2) т | 11. | |||||
| Week 1 Oct 5[2] | Week 2 Oct 12[3] | Week 3 Oct 19[4] | Week 4 Oct 26[5] | Week 5 Nov 2[6] | Week 6 Nov 9[7] | Week 7 Nov 16[8] | Week 8 Nov 23[9] | ||
Dropped:
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| Dropped: 4 Northern Michigan | Dropped: 10 Amherst | |||
| Week 1 Oct 4[10] | Week 2 Oct 11[11] | Week 3 Oct 18[12] | Week 4 Oct 25[13] | Week 5 Nov 1[14] | Week 6 Nov 8[15] | Week 7 Nov 15[16] | Week 8 Nov 22[17] | ||
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| 1. | Mississippi Southern (7) | Mississippi Southern (3–0) | Northern Michigan (4–1) (5) | Northern Michigan (5–1) (14) | Mississippi Southern (5–1) (14) | Pittsburg State (8–0) (9) | Pittsburg State (9–0) (13) | Pittsburg State (9–0) (14) | 1. |
| 2. | Hillsdale (7) т | Northern Michigan (3–1) | Mississippi Southern (3–1) (9) | Mississippi Southern (4–1) (10) | Pittsburg State (7–0) (3) | Northern Michigan (6–1) (4) | Baldwin–Wallace (8–0) (3) | Baldwin–Wallace (9–0) (1) | 2. |
| 3. | Kent State (2) т | Louisiana Tech (3–0) | Louisiana Tech (3–1) (2) | Pittsburg State (6–0) (3) | Northern Michigan (5–1) (3) | Southeastern Louisiana (8–0) (8) | Mississippi Southern (6–2) (5) | Mississippi Southern (7–2) (4) | 3. |
| 4. | Humboldt State (4) т | Texas A&I (3–0) | Texas A&I (3–1) (1) | Southeastern Louisiana (6–0) (1) | Southeastern Louisiana (7–0) (5) | Mississippi Southern (5–2) (6) | Southeastern Louisiana (8–1) (4) | Southeastern Louisiana (9–1) | 4. |
| 5. | Louisiana Tech (2) т | Delaware (3–0) | Fresno State (4–0) (3) | Fresno State (5–0) (1) | Fresno State (6–0) (2) | Baldwin–Wallace (6–0) (1) | Fresno State (8–0) (5) | Fresno State (9–0) (8) | 5. |
| 6. | Northern Michigan | Humboldt State (3–0) | Southeastern Louisiana (5–0) (2) | Baldwin–Wallace (4–0) (3) | Baldwin–Wallace (5–0) (2) | Fresno State (7–0) (4) | Florida A&M (7–0) (1) | Florida A&M (8–0) | 6. |
| 7. | Texas A&I(3) | Fresno State (3–0) | Pittsburg State (5–0) (3) | Hofstra (4–0) (1) | Idaho State (5–0) (2) | Wheaton (IL) (8–0) | Northern Michigan (6–2) (1) | Wheaton (IL) (8–0) | 7. |
| 8. | Delaware (1) | Pittsburg State (4–0) | Hofstra (3–0) (2) | Louisiana Tech (3–2) | Wheaton (IL) (7–0) | Florida A&M (6–0) (1) | Wheaton (IL) (8–0) | Whittier (9–0) | 8. |
| 9. | Arkansas State (3) | Southeastern Louisiana (4–0) | Humboldt State (3–1) | Wheaton (IL) (6–0) (1) | Florida A&M (5–0) (1) | Idaho State (5–1) | Butler (8–0) | Butler (9–0) | 9. |
| 10. | Chattanooga (1) т | Kent State (2–2) | Baldwin–Wallace (3–0) (1) | Idaho State (4–0) | West Chester (5–1) | Butler (7–0) | Whittier (8–0) | Northern Michigan (6–2) | 10. |
| 11. | Pittsburg State (1) т | Baldwin–Wallace | Idaho State (1) | Texas A&I | Butler | Lehigh (1) | Idaho State | Lehigh (7–2) т | 11. |
| 12. | Fresno State (1) | Arkansas State | Wheaton (IL) (1) | West Chester | Louisiana Tech | Delaware т | Central State (OK) | Linfield (9–0) т | 12. |
| 13. | Lenoir–Rhyne | Hillsdale т | Kent State | Butler | Texas A&I | Lenoir–Rhyne (6–1–1) т | Linfield (8–0) | Idaho State | 13. |
| 14. | Louisville (1) | Southern Illinois т | Butler | Humboldt State | Whittier | Northwestern State | Amherst (7–0) т | Central State (OK) | 14. |
| 15. | Southeastern Louisiana (1) | Idaho State | Florida A&M | Northwestern State (6–0) (1) | Humboldt State | Amherst | Lehigh (6–2) т | Northern State | 15. |
| 16. | Lamar Tech | Lenoir–Rhyne | Hillsdale (1) | Florida A&M | Northwestern State | Humboldt State | Tampa | Humboldt State т | 16. |
| 17. | Baldwin–Wallace т | Louisville | Lamar Tech (4–0) (2) | Lamar Tech | Lenoir–Rhyne | Whittier (7–0) | Humboldt State т | Lenoir–Rhyne (7–1–1) т | 17. |
| 18. | Butler т | Wheaton (IL) | Lenoir–Rhyne | Montana State | Lamar Tech | Texas A&I | Lenoir–Rhyne (7–1–1) т | Tampa | 18. |
| 19. | East Texas State т | Butler т | Lehigh | Albright (4–0) т | Southern Illinois | Northern State (7–0) | Louisiana Tech | Chattanooga | 19. |
| 20. | Florida A&M т | Lehigh т | Montana State | Lenoir–Rhyne т | Hofstra | Central State (OK) т | Southern Illinois | Ottawa | 20. |
| 21. | Idaho State т | Chattanooga т | 21. | ||||||
| Week 1 Oct 4[10] | Week 2 Oct 11[11] | Week 3 Oct 18[12] | Week 4 Oct 25[13] | Week 5 Nov 1[14] | Week 6 Nov 8[15] | Week 7 Nov 15[16] | Week 8 Nov 22[17] | ||
Dropped:
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The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) also conducted a poll of coaches at the end of the 1961 regular season. The NAIA coaches poll ranked the top 20 teams, as presented in the below table.[18] Four teams advanced to the postseason, with Pittsburg winning the bracket tournament.
1. Pittsburg †
2. Baldwin-Wallace
3. Linfield †
4. Whittier †
5. Florida A&M
6. Northern State (South Dakota) †
7. Southeastern Louisiana
8. Tampa
9. Central State (OK)
10. McNeese State
11. Panhandle A&M
12. Parsons
13. Humboldt State
14. Millikin
15. Lenoir-Rhyne
16. Ottawa (KS)
17. Arkansas Tech
18. University of Minnesota-Duluth
19. Missouri Valley
20. Westchester
† Team participated in the NAIA postseason
The Pittsburgh Courier, a leading African American newspaper, ranked the top 1961 teams from historically black colleges and universities in an era when college football was often racially segregated.
The rankings were published on December 2:[19]
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| NCAA Division I |
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| NCAA Division I-A/FBS |
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| NCAA Division I-AA/FCS |
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| Small college |
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| NCAA Division II |
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| NCAA Division III |
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