In its third season under head coach Tad Wieman, the team compiled a 5–2–1 record and outscored opponents by a total of 119 to 112.
[1][2] Howie Stanley was Princeton's team captain.
[3] He also received the John Prentiss Poe Cup, the team's highest award.
[4] Halfback Dave Allerdice was selected by the Associated Press as a second-team player on the 1940 All-Eastern college football team,[5] and by the Central Press Association as a third-team player on the All-America team.
58 (out of 697 college football teams) in the final rankings under the Litkenhous Difference by Score system for 1940.