More impressive college football ratings: Nearly 10 million watched Ohio State-Penn State

By season’s end, Ohio State’s victory over Penn State won’t be on your short list of this season’s memorable games. Devoid of much suspense or offensive firepower, all it underscored was a familiar Groundhog Day refrain for coach James Franklin and his Nittany Lions.

Yet 9.96 million people still watched.

That viewing audience on FOX Sports for “Big Noon Saturday” was the third-most of any game this college football season. For comparison, the first four games of the Houston Astros–Texas Rangers ALCS averaged 4.87 million on FOX and FS1, according to Sports Media Watch.

The Ohio State-Penn State game marked the largest viewing audience for any FOX college football game so far this season. It was the network’s seventh most-watched regular season college football game in history. The audience peaked at 11.5 million viewers from 3-3:15 p.m. ET.

The calendar has yet to flip to November and already five games have attracted at least nine million viewers. Four games reached that threshold all of last season.

Elsewhere, 8.01 million tuned in to watch Alabama beat Tennessee on CBS – the network’s largest college football audience of the season despite both teams currently being on the outside of the College Football Playoff conversation.

The surge in popularity of college football prompted Michael Mulvihill, FOX Corp‘s president of insights and analytics, to recently tweet: “Among well-established major properties I don’t know what, in all of TV, is trending any better than CFB.”

On a Thursday and Friday each March, the first two full days of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament captivate the nation and transcend the sport’s niche fan base. Each Saturday in the fall has now arguably eclipsed that – with appointment college football viewing from noon ET until after midnight.

Mulvihill added Tuesday: “While the first two days of March Madness are rightly beloved, I think a typical CFB Saturday is now even better. More games, more networks, more betting opportunities, better atmosphere. Average CFP Saturday viewership this year has been equal to March Madness [opening] Thursday and Friday combined.”

Are NIL and the transfer portal driving ratings?

And yet, there is pushback – pushback from an unlikely source: Greg Sankey.

While discussing NIL and the transfer portal last week, the SEC commissioner told Paul Finebaum: “I know that the problems may not manifest themselves in attendance and TV ratings right now. Keep in mind the TV ratings are at a time when there have been a set of strikes that doesn’t provide a lot of new programming outside of sports.”

Read Sankey’s comment again, please.

Arguably the most powerful person in college athletics is making an argument that undercuts the heightened popularity of college football this season. That’s unusual.

It’s more reasonable to believe the uptick in ratings is due to the quality of the product as well as compelling, fresh storylines. What’s more, it also stands to reason that the sport is not thriving in spite of NIL and the portal.

“The idea that athlete compensation would wreck college sports is proving to be one of the worst takes in sports history,” Mulvihill said.

Indeed, college football is thriving because of NIL and the portal.

Six other games drew at least 2 million viewers

If you’re waiting for NIL to start eroding college football viewership numbers, it’s going to be a while. 

While there was a precipitous drop-off after the top two most-watched games Saturday, six other games still drew more than 2 million viewers apiece.

Some 4.08 million saw Florida State pull away from Duke on ABC. A non-competitive game between Michigan and Michigan State still attracted 3.73 million on NBC. 

Utah‘s thrilling, last-second victory at USC drew 3.23 million late night on FOX. Earlier on the same network, Texas’ near stumble against Houston pulled in 3.08 million. Plus, Oregon–Washington State (2.35 million) and Central Florida–Oklahoma (2.17) also eclipsed 2 million viewers in two games on ABC.

“Big Noon Saturday” is averaging 5.9 million viewers, up 9% from last year. And “Big Noon Kickoff” is up 14% this year at 11 a.m. ET. Saturday was the show’s fourth most-watched edition ever.

In another notable ratings development, the Nebraska–Northwestern football game attracted 560,000 viewers on Big Ten Network. How many watched the Wisconsin-Nebraska women’s volleyball match on the same network?

612,000.

It was the most-watched regular-season volleyball match ever.