Though not as dramatic as the increase for last year’s edition, this year’s Insight Bowl was up double-digits in ratings and viewership.
The 2011 Insight Bowl, won by #14 Oklahoma over unranked Iowa, earned a 3.0 U.S. rating and 4.812 million viewers on ESPN — up 36% in ratings and 35% in viewership from last year (MIZZ/IOWA: 2.2, 3.558M), and up 650% and 615%, respectively, from 2009 (ISU/MIN: 0.4, 673K, NFLN).
Keep in mind last year’s Insight Bowl aired opposite a Vikings/Eagles NFL game on NBC, which was rescheduled from Sunday night.
This year’s game ranked as ESPN’s fourth-most viewed bowl game of the week, and the eighth-most viewed cable program of the week overall.
Not surprisingly, the fortunes of the Insight Bowl have improved substantially since the game left NFL Network for ESPN. The final two games on NFL Network drew less than 800,000 viewers. The first two games since moving back to ESPN have drawn at least 3.5 million.
Ratings/Viewership For the Insight Bowl
Past four seasons
|
Season
|
Date
|
Game
|
Net
|
Rating
|
Viewers (000)
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
2011-12
|
Fri., 12/30/11 | OKLA 31, IOWA 14 | ESPN |
3.0
|
4,812
|
|
2010-11
|
Tue., 12/28/10 | IOWA 27, MIZZ 24 | ESPN |
2.1
|
3,558
|
|
2009-10
|
Thu., 12/31/09 | ISU 14, MIN 13 | NFLN |
0.4
|
673
|
|
2008-09
|
Wed., 12/31/08 | KU 42, MIN 21 | NFLN |
n/a
|
731
|
(This year’s numbers from Nielsen.com)
