College football’s bowl season was marked by multi-year viewership lows.
Of the 39 bowl games on a Nielsen rated network this season, 25 posted a decline in viewership compared to last year and 23 of those hit a multi-year low. That includes a five-year low for the Clemson/Alabama national championship, a nine-year low for the Alamo Bowl, and decade-plus lows for the Cotton, Hawaii and New Mexico bowls.
A handful of other games barely avoided multi-year lows, including the second-least watched Rose Bowl in at least 16 years and the second-least watched Sugar Bowl in at least 18.
Among the bright spots during the postseason was the Orange Bowl, which earned its top non-playoff audience since 2008, and the FCS national championship — which was the most-watched in at least five years.
| RATINGS/VIEWERSHIP FOR COLLEGE FOOTBALL POSTSEASON * Peach and Fiesta bowls are compared to last year’s semifinals ^ Orange and Cotton bowls are compared to 2014-15 season |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowl | Game | Rtg. | Viewership | Date/Time | Net | |
| This Yr. | +/- | |||||
| CFP National Championship | Clemson Alabama |
14.2 | 25.266M | -3% | Mon 1/9 8 PM |
ESPN Megacast |
| Lowest rated and least-watched title game since 2012 | ||||||
| CFP Semifinal (Peach Bowl)* | Alabama Washington |
10.7 | 19.344M | +23% | Sat 12/31 3 PM |
ESPN ESPN2 |
| CFP Semifinal (Fiesta Bowl)* | Clemson Ohio State |
9.8 | 19.237M | +3% | Sat 12/31 7 PM |
ESPN ESPN2 |
| Rose Bowl | USC Penn State |
8.6 | 15.740M | +16% | Mon 1/2 5 PM |
ESPN |
| Second-lowest rating in Rose Bowl history | ||||||
| Orange Bowl^ | FSU Michigan |
6.2 | 11.461M | +28% | Fri 12/30 8 PM |
ESPN |
| Most-watched Orange Bowl, excluding playoffs, since 2008 | ||||||
| Sugar Bowl | Oklahoma Auburn |
5.6 | 9.515M | +6% | Mon 1/2 8 PM |
ESPN |
| Second-lowest Sugar Bowl rating since 1994 | ||||||
| Citrus Bowl | LSU Louisville |
3.9 | 6.390M | -27% | Sat 12/31 11 AM |
ABC |
| Outback Bowl | Florida Iowa |
3.6 | 6.106M | +116% | Mon 1/2 1 PM |
ABC |
| Cotton Bowl^ | Wisconsin W. Michigan |
3.1 | 5.442M | -40% | Mon 1/2 1 PM |
ESPN |
| Lowest rated and least-watched Cotton Bowl since 2005 | ||||||
| Music City Bowl | Tennessee Nebraska |
3.1 | 5.026M | -7% | Fri 12/30 3:30 PM |
ESPN |
| Belk Bowl | Virginia Tech Arkansas |
2.9 | 4.963M | +42% | Thu 12/29 5:30 PM |
ESPN |
| Alamo Bowl | Oklahoma St. Colorado |
2.6 | 4.551M | -39% | Thu 12/29 9 PM |
ESPN |
| Least-watched Alamo Bowl since 2007 | ||||||
| Russell Athletic Bowl | Miami West Virginia |
2.5 | 4.252M | +1% | Wed 12/28 5:30 PM |
ESPN |
| Holiday Bowl | Minnesota Wash. St. |
2.4 | 4.046M | -5% | Tue 12/27 7 PM |
ESPN |
| Texas Bowl | K-State Texas A&M |
2.2 | 3.791M | -24% | Wed 12/28 9 PM |
ESPN |
| Least-watched Texas Bowl since 2009 | ||||||
| Las Vegas Bowl | SDSU Houston |
2.4 | 3.744M | +2% | Sat 12/17 3:30 PM |
ABC |
| Most-watched Las Vegas Bowl since 2012 | ||||||
| Liberty Bowl | Georgia TCU |
— | 3.128M | -56% | Fri 12/30 12 PM |
ESPN |
| Detroit Bowl (Quick Lane) | Bos. Coll. Maryland |
— | 3.019M | +103% | Mon 12/26 2:30 PM |
ESPN |
| Sun Bowl | Stanford UNC |
1.9 | 2.926M | -38% | Fri 12/30 2 PM |
CBS |
| Least-watched Sun Bowl since *at least* 2007 | ||||||
| Celebration Bowl | Grambling N.C. Central |
1.8 | 2.711M | +6% | Sat 12/17 12 PM |
ABC |
| Gator Bowl | Ga. Tech Kentucky |
1.6 | 2.647M | -55% | Sat 12/31 11 AM |
ESPN |
| Second-smallest Gator Bowl audience since at least 2001 | ||||||
| S.F. Bowl (Fstr. Farms) | Utah Indiana |
1.6 | 2.628M | -35% | Wed 12/28 8:30 PM |
FOX |
| Least-watched S.F. Bowl since 2012 | ||||||
| Mobile Bowl (Dollar Gen.) | Ohio Troy |
— | 2.512M | +7% | Fri 12/23 8 PM |
ESPN |
| Most-watched Mobile Bowl since 2010-11 season | ||||||
| Pinstripe Bowl | N’Western Pittsburgh |
— | 2.425M | -36% | Wed 12/28 2 PM |
ESPN |
| Least-watched Pinstripe Bowl ever (debuted in 2010) | ||||||
| Poinsettia Bowl | BYU Wyoming |
— | 2.380M | +72% | Wed 12/21 9 PM |
ESPN |
| Armed Forces Bowl | La. Tech Navy |
— | 2.341M | +24% | Fri 12/23 4:30 PM |
ESPN |
| Second-largest Armed Forces Bowl audience since 2007 | ||||||
| Birmingham Bowl | USF S. Carolina |
— | 2.308M | -4% | Thu 12/29 2 PM |
ESPN |
| Second-smallest Birmingham Bowl audience since 2007 | ||||||
| Cactus Bowl | Baylor Boise. St. |
— | 2.282M | -38% | Tue 12/27 10:15 PM |
ESPN |
| Least-watched Cactus Bowl since 2009 | ||||||
| Military Bowl | Wake Forest Temple |
— | 2.100M | -4% | Tue 12/27 3:30 PM |
ESPN |
| Second-smallest Military Bowl audience ever (debuted in 2008) | ||||||
| St. Pete Bowl | Miss. St. Miami (OH) |
— | 2.045M | -15% | Mon 12/26 11 AM |
ESPN |
| Heart of Dallas Bowl | Army North Texas |
— | 1.615M | -38% | Tue 12/27 12 PM |
ESPN |
| Boca Raton Bowl | WKU Memphis |
— | 1.581M | -19% | Tue 12/20 7 PM |
ESPN |
| Smallest Boca Raton Bowl audience ever (debuted in 2014) | ||||||
| FCS National Championship | J. Madison Youngstwn St. |
0.9 | 1.562M | +16% | Sat 1/7 12 PM |
ESPN2 |
| Largest audience for FCS nat’l champ. since *at least* 2012 | ||||||
| Camellia Bowl | App. State Toledo |
0.9 | 1.483M | -20% | Sat 12/17 5:30 PM |
ESPN |
| New Mexico Bowl | New Mexico UTSA |
0.9 | 1.391M | -24% | Sat 12/17 2 PM |
ESPN |
| Least-watched New Mexico Bowl since *at least* 2005 | ||||||
| Bahamas Bowl | Old Dominion E. Michigan |
— | 1.371M | -36% | Fri 12/23 1 PM |
ESPN |
| Smallest Bahamas Bowl audience ever (debuted in 2014) | ||||||
| Hawaii Bowl | Hawaii MTSU |
0.7 | 1.359M | -17% | Sat 12/24 8 PM |
ESPN |
| Least-watched Hawaii Bowl since *at least* 2005 | ||||||
| New Orleans Bowl | Southern Miss La. Lafayette |
0.9 | 1.335M | -6% | Sat 12/17 9 PM |
ESPN |
| Least-watched New Orleans Bowl since 2009 | ||||||
| Independence Bowl | N.C. State Vanderbilt |
— | 1.270M | -63% | Mon 12/26 5 PM |
ESPN2 |
| Least-watched Independence Bowl since 2008 | ||||||
| Idaho Potato Bowl | Idaho Colorado St. |
— | 1.143M | +6% | Thu 12/22 7 PM |
ESPN |
| Miami Beach Bowl | Tulsa C. Michigan |
— | 794K | -31% | Mon 12/19 2:30 PM |
ESPN |
| Smallest Miami Beach Bowl audience ever (debuted in 2014) | ||||||
| D-II National Championship | NW Miz. St. North Alabama |
0.5 | 790K | +114% | Sat 12/17 4 PM |
ESPN2 |
| D-III National Championship | Mry Hrdn-Bylr UW-Oshkosh |
— | 340K | -33% | Fri 12/16 7 PM |
ESPNU |
(Bowl data from various sources, including ESPN, Sports Business Daily, ShowBuzz Daily and Sports TV Ratings)
