College Football TV Ratings: Top 10 most-watched games of Week 7

Week 7 was one of the most notable college football slates yet. Multiple ranked teams lost and some key rivals squared off in games that had College Football Playoff implications, further showing the amount of parity in the game this year.

The Nielsen ratings were also impressive once again.

The two college football rivalry games of Week 7 drew the highest TV ratings of the week, according to Sports Media Watch. Of course, the headliner was a battle of Heisman Trophy contenders — but another storied rivalry came in right behind it.

Oregon vs. Washington

Channel: ABC
Date/Time: Oct. 14, 3:30 p.m. ET
Viewers: 7.04 million

Michael Penix Jr. became the heavy Heisman Trophy favorite in the most-watched game of Week 7 as Washington defeated Oregon in a 36-33 thriller. It marked the 11th college football game this year to top 7 million viewers, and it resulted in the best TV ratings yet for a Huskies game this year.

USC vs. Notre Dame

Channel: NBC
Date/Time: Oct. 14, 7:30 p.m. ET
Viewers: 6.43 million

Marcus Freeman picked up a signature win for Notre Dame while Lincoln Riley, Caleb Williams and USC have some questions to answer after the Fighting Irish handed the Trojans a 48-20 loss in South Bend. The NBC broadcast drew some criticism, but it was still an impressive audience for a rivalry matchup.

Texas A&M vs. Tennessee

Channel: CBS
Date/Time: Oct. 14, 3:30 p.m. ET
Viewers: 4.38 million

A checkered Neyland Stadium is one of the best atmospheres in college football, and the TV ratings were solid for Tennessee’s 20-13 victory over Texas A&M. A close game certainly helped, especially since the go-ahead touchdown came on a punt return by Dee Williams in the third quarter.

Indiana vs. Michigan

Channel: FOX
Date/Time: Oct. 14, noon ET
Viewers: 3.55 million

Michigan’s dominance to start the season continued in Saturday’s resounding 52-7 victory over Indiana. J.J. McCarthy continues to climb the Heisman Trophy odds board as the Wolverines get ready to take on Michigan State in a prime time rivalry game this week.

Arkansas vs. Alabama

Channel: ESPN
Date/Time: Oct. 14, noon ET
Viewers: 3.43 million

Alabama took a 21-6 lead into halftime before Arkansas rallied back, but the Crimson Tide pulled off the 24-21 victory at Bryant-Denny Stadium to stay atop the SEC West. Nick Saban’s group continues to make things interesting, and the victory could help set the table for a Third Saturday in October matchup against Tennessee — a traditionally big TV ratings draw for CBS.

Stanford vs. Colorado

Channel: ESPN
Date/Time: Oct. 13, 10 p.m. ET
Viewers: 3.29 million

Colorado has been the talk of college football this year — with the TV ratings to back it up — but the Buffaloes’ loss to Stanford resulted in their lowest viewership yet. They blew a 29-0 halftime lead in the 46-43 overtime loss in a matchup that helped ESPN reach top-10 viewership for the second straight Friday night game.

Miami vs. North Carolina

Channel: ABC
Date/Time: Oct. 14, 7:30 p.m. ET
Viewers: 3.08 million

All eyes were on how Miami would respond after its rough ending against Georgia Tech, but Drake Maye and North Carolina came away with the 41-31 victory in front of an average of 3.08 million people. Maye is also seeing his Heisman Trophy odds increase as the Tar Heels make a run at an ACC title.

Georgia vs. Vanderbilt

Channel: CBS
Date/Time: Oct. 14, noon ET
Viewers: 2.46 million

More than 2.46 million people watched Georgia defeat Vanderbilt 37-20, but they also saw star tight end Brock Bowers leave with a high ankle sprain. The Bulldogs’ standing in the SEC race gets a little more interesting as one of their best playmakers undergoes tightrope surgery, and they’ll have some extra time to prepare for the Oct. 28 rivalry game against Florida out of the bye week.

Iowa vs. Wisconsin

Channel: FOX
Date/Time: Oct. 14, 4 p.m. ET
Viewers: 2.34 million

Defense was the name of the game — as it usually is — for Iowa in a 15-6 victory over Wisconsin to help the Hawkeyes jump into the AP Top 25. It wasn’t without some losses, though, as Iowa lost tight end Erick All and Wisconsin lost quarterback Tanner Mordecai due to injuries.

Auburn vs. LSU

Channel: ESPN
Date/Time: Oct. 14, 7 p.m. ET
Viewers: 2.16 million

Auburn’s struggles continued last week against LSU as Jayden Daniels’ Tigers pulled off the 48-18 victory. It was another solid performance from Daniels, whose Heisman stock has been on the rise for some time now.

With the month of October well underway — and the conference championship races heating up — games are going to get much more interesting through the second half of the season. So far, though, college football looks to be in a strong spot from a TV ratings perspective.