The 1961 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the 1961 NCAA University Division football season. In their second year under head coach John McKay, the Trojans compiled a 4–5–1 record (2–1–1 against conference opponents), finished in a tie for second place in the Athletic Association of Western Universities, and were outscored by their opponents by a combined total of 167 to 151.^[1]

Quarterback Bill Nelsen led the team in passing, completing 39 of 86 passes for 683 yards with four touchdowns and five interceptions. Ben Wilson led the team in rushing, with 619 yards on 139 carries. Hal Bedsole was the team's leading receiver with 27 catches for 525 yards and six touchdowns.^[2] Bedsole was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2012.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance
September 22	Georgia Tech*	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	L 7–27	32,928
September 29	SMU*	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 21–16	29,148
October 7	No. 1 Iowa*	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	L 34–35	30,263
October 14	at No. 8 Notre Dame*	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	L 0–30	50,427
October 21	at California	California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 28–14	38,000
October 28	Illinois*	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 14–10	28,694
November 4	at Washington	Husky Stadium Seattle, WA	T 0–0	54,916
November 11	Stanford	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (rivalry)	W 30–15	36,598
November 18	at Pittsburgh*	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	L 9–10	34,820
November 25	UCLA	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (Victory Bell)	L 7–10	57,580
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game