1961 College Football All-America Team
The 1961 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1961. The six selectors recognized by the NCAA as "official" for the 1961 season are the American Football Coaches Association, the Associated Press, the Football Writers Association of America, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, the Sporting News, and the United Press International.
Consensus All-Americans
For the year 1961, the NCAA recognizes six published All-American teams as "official" designations for purposes of its consensus determinations. The following chart identifies the NCAA-recognized consensus All-Americans and displays which first-team designations they received.| Name | Position | School | Number | Official | Other |
| Roy Winston | Guard | LSU | 6/6 | AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | CP, Time, WC |
| Ernie Davis | Halfback | Syracuse | 6/6 | AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | CP, Time, WC |
| Bob Ferguson | Fullback | Ohio State | 6/6 | AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | CP, Time, WC |
| Billy Neighbors | Tackle | Alabama | 6/6 | AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | CP, WC |
| Jimmy Saxton | Halfback | Texas | 6/6 | AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | CP, WC |
| Gary Collins | End | Maryland | 5/6 | AFCA, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | CP, Time, WC |
| Joe Romig | Guard | Colorado | 5/6 | AFCA, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | WC |
| Alex Kroll | Center | Rutgers | 5/6 | AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI | WC |
| Sandy Stephens | Quarterback | Minnesota | 5/6 | AP, FWAA, NEA, SN, UPI | WC |
| Bill Miller | End | Miami | 4/6 | AP, FWAA, NEA, SN | Time, WC |
| Merlin Olsen | Tackle | Utah State | 4/6 | AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI | Time, WC |
All-American selections for 1961
Ends
- Gary Collins, Maryland
- Bill Miller, Miami
- Greg Mather, Navy
- Gary Hillebrand, Colorado
- Pat Richter, Wisconsin
- Robert Mitinger, Penn State
- Hugh Campbell, Washington State
Tackles
- Billy Neighbors, Alabama
- Merlin Olsen, Utah State
- Bobby Bell, Minnesota
- Ed Blaine, Missouri
- Don Talbert, Texas
- Fate Echols, Northwestern
- Steve Barnett, Oregon
- Jim Dunaway, Ole Miss
- Art Gregory, Duke
Guards
- Roy Winston, LSU
- Joe Romig, Colorado
- Dave Behrman, Michigan State
- Nick Buoniconti, Notre Dame
- Bookie Bolin, Mississippi
- Mike Ingram, Ohio State
- Dave Watson, Georgia Tech
- Stan Sezurek, Purdue
- Larry Vignali, Pitt
Centers
- Alex Kroll, Rutgers
- Bill Van Buren, Iowa
- Ron Hull, UCLA
- Irv Goode, Kentucky
- Larry Onesti, Northwestern
Quarterbacks
- Sandy Stephens, Minnesota
- Roman Gabriel, North Carolina State
- John Hadl, Kansas
- Doug Elmore, Mississippi
- Eddie Wilson, Arizona
- John Hadl, Kansas
Halfbacks
- Ernie Davis, Syracuse
- Jimmy Saxton, Texas
- Lance Alworth, Arkansas
- Ronnie Bull, Baylor
- Pat Trammell, Alabama
- Bennie McRae, Michigan
- Dave Hoppman, Iowa State
Fullbacks
- Bob Ferguson, Ohio State
- Billy Ray Adams, Mississippi
- George Saimes, Michigan State
Key
- Bold – Consensus All-American
- -1 – First-team selection
- -2 – Second-team selection
- -3 – Third-team selection
Official selectors
- AFCA = American Football Coaches Association
- AP = Associated Press
- FWAA = Football Writers Association of America
- NEA = Newspaper Enterprise Association
- SN = Sporting News
- UPI = United Press International
Other selectors
- CP = Central Press Association
- Time = Time magazine
- WC = Walter Camp Football Foundation