The 1961 Tulane Green Wave football team was an American football team that represented Tulane University during the 1961 NCAA University Division football season as a member of the Southeastern Conference. In their eighth year under head coach Andy Pilney, the team compiled a 2–8 record.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 23	at Stanford*	Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA	L 7–9	19,000	[1]
September 30	at No. 4 Alabama	Ladd Memorial Stadium Mobile, AL	L 0–9	33,000	[2]
October 6	Florida	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	L 3–14	30,000	[3]
October 14	VPI*	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	W 27–14		[4]
October 21	at No. 2 Ole Miss	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)	L 0–41	40,000	[5]
October 28	No. 9 Georgia Tech	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	L 0–35	22,000	[6]
November 4	at Clemson*	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	L 6–21	25,000	[7]
November 11	Miami (FL)*	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	L 0–6	15,000	[8]
November 17	Vanderbilt	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	W 17–14	15,000	[9]
November 25	at No. 4 LSU	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (Battle for the Rag)	L 0–62	63,500	[10]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game