Despite facing the NFL, San Francisco’s annual bowl game hit a six year high in viewership.
Saturday’s Nebraska/UCLA Foster Farms Bowl drew 4.0 million viewers on ESPN, up 25% from Stanford/Maryland last year (3.2M) and up 8% from Washington/BYU in 2013 (3.8M). Ratings were not immediately available.
The Cornhuskers’ win ranks as the most-watched edition of the game in six years, since USC/Boston College in 2009 (7.6M). It also ranks as the most-watched game of the bowl season on cable (14 telecasts through Sunday).
Viewership was still no match for last year’s comparable USC/Nebraska Holiday Bowl, which had 6.8 million viewers in a similar Saturday night window. Unlike that game, which aired virtually unopposed, this year’s matchup aired opposite the Eagles/Washington NFL game on NFL Network (8.1M).
(Sat. numbers via ShowBuzz Daily)
