The Fiesta Bowl bounced back from last year’s low, but did not do particularly well.
Friday’s Ohio State/Notre Dame Fiesta Bowl drew a 5.6 final rating and 9.8 million viewers on ESPN, up 22% in ratings and 32% in viewership from Boise State/Arizona on New Year’s Eve last year (4.6, 7.4M) but down 15% and 13%, respectively, from UCF/Baylor on New Year’s night in 2013 (6.6, 11.2M).
The Buckeyes’ win earned the second-lowest Fiesta Bowl rating since at least 1986, ahead of only last year. ESPN has now aired three of the six lowest rated Fiesta Bowl games over that span, with the 2011 game tied for fourth. Keep in mind this year’s Fiesta Bowl aired at 1 PM ET, the earliest start for the game since 1994.
The 1 PM start subjected the Fiesta Bowl to competition from Michigan/Florida in the Citrus Bowl, which had a 5.4 overnight rating on ABC. Even so, it did better than last year’s Michigan State/Baylor Cotton Bowl in the same window (5.2, 9.1M).
The only other time Ohio State and Notre Dame have played each other in the Fiesta Bowl, 2006, the game had a 12.9 and 20.6 million viewers on ABC. That year, the game aired in the traditional Rose Bowl window of 5 PM ET.
(Fri. numbers from ESPN, ShowBuzz Daily)
